Course Form
I. Summary of Proposed Changes
Dept / Program
History
Prefix and Course #
HSTA 461
Course Title
Research in Montana History
Short Title (max. 26 characters incl. spaces)
Research in MT History
Summarize the change(s) proposed
Add new course to catalog
II. Endorsement/Approvals
Complete the form and obtain signatures before submitting to Faculty Senate Office
Please type / print name Signature
Date
Requestor:
Jeff Wiltse
Phone/ email :
X2987
Program Chair/Director:
John Eglin
Other affected programs
Dean:
Chris Comer
Are other departments/programs affected by this
Please obtain signature(s) from the
modification because of
Chair/Director of any such department/ program
(a) required courses incl. prerequisites or corequisites, (above) before submission
(b) perceived overlap in content areas
(c) cross-listing of coursework
III: To Add a New Course Syllabus and assessment information is required (paste syllabus into
section V or attach). Course should have internal coherence and clear focus.
YES
NO
Common Course Numbering Review: Does an equivalent course exist
elsewhere in the MUS? Do the proposed abbreviation, number, title and credits
align with existing course(s)? Please indicate equivalent course/campus 
XX
http://mus.edu/transfer/CCN/ccn_default.asp
Exact entry to appear in the next catalog (Specify course abbreviation, level, number, title, credits,
repeatability (if applicable), frequency of offering, prerequisites, and a brief description.) 
UG HSTA 461 Research in Montana History 3 cr. Offered intermittently. This course is a
research and writing seminar in Montana history. Students will learn advanced research
methodology in history and will be exposed to a variety of databases and source collections in
Montana history that are available locally and online. Students will research and write a primarysource based paper on a topic in Montana history. This course fulfills the upper-division writing
requirement for the history department and the university. Consent of instructor required.
Justification: How does the course fit with the existing curriculum? Why is it needed?
The history department is switching from requiring a standardized 300-level research course to requiring
a 400-level research course, some of which are supposed to be topical. This will be my topical research
seminar. In teaching the University’s 200-level survey of Montana history, many students have expressed
to me interest in a research seminar in Montana history. This course will meet that demand.
Are there curricular adjustments to accommodate teaching this course?
No
Complete for UG courses. (UG courses should be assigned a 400 number).
Describe graduate increment (Reference guidelines: http://www.umt.edu/facultysenate/Grad/UG.htm)
Graduate students will be required to read four additional secondary works in Montana history and write
an eight-to-ten page historiographical review.
Fees may be requested only for courses meeting specific conditions determined by the
YES
NO
Board of Regents. Please indicate whether this course will be considered for a fee.
XX
If YES, what is the proposed amount of the fee?
Justification:
IV. To Delete or Change an Existing Course – check X all that apply
Deletion
Title
Course Number Change
From:
Level U, UG, G
To:
Description Change
Change in Credits
From:
To:
Repeatability
Cross Listing
(primary program
initiates form)
Prerequisites
Is there a fee associated with the course?
1. Current course information at it appears in catalog 2. Full and exact entry (as proposed) 
(http://www.umt.edu/catalog) 
From:
To:
3. If cross-listed course: secondary program &
course number
4. Is this a course with MUS Common Course Numbering? If yes, then will this change eliminate the
course’s common course status? Please explain below.
5. Graduate increment if level of course is changed
to UG. Reference guidelines at:
http://www.umt.edu/facultysenate/Grad/UG.htm
(syllabus required in section V)
Have you reviewed the graduate increment
guidelines? Please check (X) space provided.
6. Other programs affected by the change
7. Justification for proposed change
V. Syllabus/Assessment Information
Required for new courses and course change from U to UG. Paste syllabus in field below or attach and
send digital copy with form.
Professor Jeff Wiltse
jeffrey.wiltse@umontana.edu
LA 263/x2987
Office hours:
HSTA 461:
Research in Montana History
Description
This course is a research and writing seminar in Montana history. Students will learn advanced
research methodology in history and will be exposed to the variety of databases and source
collections in Montana history that are available locally and online. Students will research and
write a thirty-page, primary-source scholarly paper on a topic in Montana history. This course
fulfills the upper-division writing requirement for the history department and the university.
Course Objectives
Expand students’ knowledge in Montana history.
Teach students how to frame a research problem and develop a research question.
Teach students how to identify relevant primary and secondary sources.
Teach students to research in key online databases, including World Cat, America:
History & Life, American Periodical Series, Congressional Record, Northwest Digital
Archive, and New York Times Historical.
5. Improve student’s ability to analyze historical sources.
1.
2.
3.
4.
6. Improve students’ ability to organize and write a sophisticated, argument-driven research
paper.
Readings
Copies of the following books are available at the bookstore. They are the primary texts for the
course.
Wayne Booth, et al., The Craft of Research
Anthony Brundage, Going to the Sources: A Guide to Historical Research and Writing
Michael Malone, et al., Montana: A History of Two Centuries
Assignments
Prospectus:
A proposal that describes your research project, states your initial research
question, and identifies relevant primary and secondary sources.
Source Analysis: A preliminary four-page paper that analyzes some of the primary sources you
have collected for the research project.
Draft:
A complete draft of your thirty-page research paper.
Research Paper:
The final, revised version of your thirty-page research paper.
Grading
Your final grade will be the weighted average of your individual grades for the term. Final letter
grades are figured at 90%=A, 80%=B, 70%=C, 60%=D. The dividing line for pluses is _7% and
minuses _3%. You must take this course for a grade. Grades will be weighted as follows:
Prospectus
Source Analysis
Draft
Research Paper
Participation
10 percent
15 percent
25 percent
40 percent
10 percent
Academic Honesty
Neither plagiarism nor any form of cheating will be tolerated. The work you submit in this course
must be your own. When you draw from the words and thoughts of others, acknowledge it in
footnotes. Plagiarism/cheating will result in a failing grade for the course.
Course Schedule
Week One:
Course Introduction
Week Two:
Historical Research and Writing
Read: Brundage, Going to the Sources, 1-61.
Week Three:
Sources in Montana History I (Meet in Library)
Read: Malone, Montana, 3-186.
Week Four:
Sources in Montana History II (Meet in Library)
Read: Malone, Montana, 187-385.
Week Five:
Research Problems and Questions
Read: Booth, Craft of Research, 29-102.
Brundage, Going to the Sources, 95-117.
Week Six:
Prospectus Workshop
Read: Article on writing a prospectus
Week Seven:
Document Analysis Workshop
Prospectus Due
Read: Document Set
Booth, Craft of Research, 103-170.
Week Eight:
Individual Meetings with Professor (Discuss Prospectus)
Week Nine:
Models of Scholarly History Articles
Document Analysis Due
Read: Kent Curtis, “Producing a Gold Rush: National Ambitions and the
Northern
Rocky Mountains,” WHQ (Autumn 2009), 275-298.
Eric Clements, “Pragmatic Revolutionaries?: Tactics, Ideologies,
and the Western Federation of Miners in the Progressive Era,”
WHQ (Winter 2009), 445-468.
Week Ten:
Individual Meetings with Professor (Discuss Document Analysis Papers)
Week Eleven:
Drafting Workshop
Read: Booth, Craft of Research, 171-248.
Week Twelve:
Revising and Rewriting
Draft Due
Read: Booth, Craft of Research, 249-270.
Brundage, Going to the Sources, 118-34.
Week Thirteen:
Individual Meetings with Professor (Discuss Drafts)
Week Fourteen:
Research Presentations
Week Fifteen:
Research Presentations
Research Paper Due
VI Department Summary (Required if several forms are submitted) In a separate document list
course number, title, and proposed change for all proposals.
VII Copies and Electronic Submission. After approval, submit original, one copy, summary of
proposals and electronic file to the Faculty Senate Office, UH 221, camie.foos@mso.umt.edu.
Revised 11-2009