Warwick University History Department
First Year Core Module
HI 153
THE MAKING OF THE MODERN WORLD
MODULE GUIDE FOR TUTORS 2008-09
Module Director: Dr Gerd-Rainer Horn
Tel. 02476 572746
72746 (internal)
g-r.horn@warwick.ac.uk
The purpose of this short guide is to explain some of the workings of the
Making of the Modern World module. It includes an outline of the lecture
and seminar programme; a schedule of MMW meetings; provides
information on assessment requirements and feedback sessions; it
outlines the skills programme which will be followed by all MMW
students and the project work which they are expected to complete.
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1. Lecture and seminar programme for the year 2007-08
Term Dates: Monday 29/9 to Friday 5/12
Monday 5/1 to Friday 14/3
Monday 20/4 to Friday 27/6
AUTUMN TERM
WEEK 1: INDUCTION – see separate programme for Monday meetings
Wednesday lecture: Making of the Modern World overview and skills
agenda. Rainer Horn (Module Director)/Richard Parker
(Library)/Jonathon Davies (languages)
WEEK 2: ENLIGHTENMENT, REVOLUTION AND MODERNITY 1
Lecture: Enlightenment and Modernity SVD
Lecture: Enlightenment/Enlightening SVD
WEEK 3: ENLIGHTENMENT, REVOLUTION AND MODERNITY 2
Lecture: A French Revolution… SVD
Lecture: … in an Age of Atlantic Revolution SVD
Associated Skill: Document analysis – Declaration of the Rights of Man
et al.
WEEK 4: THE WEALTH AND POVERTY OF NATIONS
Lecture: The Industrial Revolution: Origins MB
Lecture: The Industrial Revolution: Stages MB
Associated Skill: Measuring History (1)
Week 5: POVERTY AND UNDERDEVELOPMENT
Lecture: Famine and Poverty in India DH
Lecture: The Debate on Poverty
DH
Associated Skill: Measuring history (2)
WEEK 6: READING WEEK
WEEK 7: NATURE AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Lecture: The Romance of Nature in the Age of Industry DH
Lecture: Modern Environmental Movements DH
Associated Skill: Landscape
WEEK 8: IDEOLOGIES AND STATES (1): THE LIBERAL NATIONAL STATE
Lecture: Liberalism: Evolution of a Doctrine SH
Lecture: Nationalism in the modern world SH
Associated skill: Reading primary sources (1)
WEEK 9: IDEOLOGIES AND STATES (2): THE SOCIALIST CHALLENGE
Lecture: From Marx to Lenin to Stalin RH
Lecture: Socialism and the Extra-European World RH
2
Associated Skill: Reading Primary Sources (2)
WEEK 10: IDEOLOGIES AND STATES (3): FASCISM
Lecture: Fascism: Between Nationalism and Total War CM
Lecture: Fascism and Modern Propaganda CM
Associated Skill: Propaganda Film
SPRING TERM
WEEK 11: IDEOLOGIES AND STATES (4): THE WIDER WORLD
Lecture: Imperialism DB
Lecture: Globalisation MB
Associated Skill: Historical use of Photography:
WEEK 12:WAR, VIOLENCE, AND MODERNITY (1): FACES OF WAR
Lecture: Modernising War CH
Lecture: The Social Costs and Scars of Modern War CH
Associated Skill: Oral History of the Experience of War
WEEK 13: WAR, VIOLENCE, AND MODERNITY (2): CIVIL VIOLENCE
Lecture: Terrorism and Revolutionary Violence CR
Lecture: Terror, Genocide and Massacre in the Twentieth Century CM
Associated Skill: Memory and memorialisation
WEEK 14: FAITH AND MODERNITY
Lecture: The Secularisation of the Modern World CR
Lecture: Religious Responses to Modernity CR
Associated Skill: Architecture as an historical source
WEEK 15: IDENTITIES (1)
Lecture: Class ML
Lecture: Gender ML
Associated Skill: Personal archives – selected items in the Modern
Records Centre
WEEK 16: READING WEEK
WEEK 17: IDENTITIES (2)
Lecture: Manufacturing ‘Modern’ Citizens: Nationalism and Identity in China
Identities CH
Lecture: Race TL
Associated Skill: Fiction as an historical source
WEEK 18: THE CHALLENGE TO POSITIVISM
Lecture: Freud, Nietzsche and the Challenge to Positivism CS
Lecture: Modernism CS
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Associated Skill: Philosophical and Psychological Texts as historical
sources
WEEK 19: THE FORMATION OF MODERN AMERICAN CULTURE
Lecture: The ‘Incorporation of America’ JS
Lecture: Modernism, Mass Culture, and the Middlebrow JS
Associated Skill: Feature Film as an historical source
WEEK 20: COLD WAR, GLOBALIZATION AND THE RISE OF U.S. HEGEMONY
Lecture: From Yalta to Vietnam RF
Lecture: 1989, the Collapse of Communism and the ‘New World
Order’ RO
Associated Skill: Reading Diplomatic Documents
SUMMER TERM
Week 21: THE SIXTIES
Lecture: Nonconformists Prepare the Terrain RH
Lecture: Political Revolt RH
Associated Skill: Popular Music as an historical source
WEEK 22: POSTMODERNISM – AND AFTER?
Lecture: Postmodernism and Postmodernity MT
Lecture: Postcolonialism and the Provincializing of Europe DH
Associated Skill: History and the Internet
WEEK 23: OVERVIEW, REVISION AND COURSE REVIEW
Lecture: Exam revision and course review RH
(seminars this week will be devoted to discussing the course overview,
exam queries and end of year feedback reports)
Revision Classes will be organised for week 24
LECTURING STAFF:
MB = Maxine Berg; DB = Daniel Branch; RF = Roger Fagge; DH = David
Hardiman; CH = Christian Hess; SH = Sarah Hodges; RH = Rainer Horn; TL =
Tim Lockley; ML = Maria Luddy; CM = Christoph Mick; RO = Robin Okey; CR =
Chris Read; JS = Jennifer Smyth; CS = Carolyn Steedman; MT = Matthew
Thomson; SVD = Stephan Van Damme
Lecturers are requested to email their lecture notes (or power point
presentations) for students to me, g-r.horn@warwick.ac.uk immediately after
the lecture has been delivered. These will then be placed on the module
website for the students.
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2. Lecture Times
Lectures take place at the following times:
Tuesdays
11.00-12.00 Arts Centre Conference Hall
Wednesdays 09-00 – 10.00 MS.01 (Maths Building)
3. Seminars
A list of seminar groups will be posted on the departmental first year notice board
at the beginning of term and on the module website. You will be given a list of the
students in your group/s. You will meet your group/s on Thursday afternoon in
the first week of term from 2.30 p.m. onwards in your own room. In this meeting
you are expected to take the names and degree course being followed by the
student, arrange meeting times with your group/s, ensure that all of the students
can make those meetings (if there is a clash then a student may need to change
to another seminar group), suggest readings for the following week, outline their
workload (see below). In the first two weeks there is some movement of
students between groups. A final and definitive list of students in your group/s
should be known to you by the end of week 2. It is essential that you provide
the departmental secretary, Jean Noonan, with a list of students in your
group/s by the beginning of week 3. Meetings are by arrangement, but
most seminar tutors run their Making of the Modern World seminars on Thursday
afternoons from 2.30 p.m.
There will be an MMW tutors’ meeting at 4 p.m. in H302 on Thursday
afternoon in week one of term.
4. The Making of the Modern World Website
The website is an essential adjunct to this guide. You really must become familiar
with the site and consult it regularly as it will be frequently updated. It includes
the following sections:
the list of lectures and seminars
seminar groups,
skills
project work
bibliography (reading list with some links to on-line resources)
lecture notes (synopses of the lectures/skills handouts usually added after the
lectures)
module forum
essay questions
sample exam paper
sources of help (including links to the major journals)
full module booklet
The site is located at:
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/undergraduate/modules/hi153
It is easily accessible from the University home page. Click on the following:
Departments and Services
History
Year 1 module index
Making of the Modern World (HI 153)
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In order to access the website on university machines it is necessary to register
with IT Services to obtain a username. You will need your library card in order to
register. Alternatively you can register on-line at:
https://www.warwick.ac.uk/cgi-bin/secure/register.pl
This will enable you to obtain a Warwick e-mail address, print using university
machines and access other IT facilities including electronic sources in the library.
If you need any help accessing the web-site or registering with IT Services please
contact the Help and Advisory desk in the Student Computer Centre, phone
73737, or e-mail: help@warwick.ac.uk.
5. MMW tutors’ meetings
Over the course of the academic year there will be a total of seven MMW tutors’
meetings. The first meeting, in week one of the autumn term, will allow for a
discussion of how the MMW module works. The remaining meetings will be used
to discuss the academic elements of the module. All meetings will take place on
Thursdays in H402 from 1 -2 p.m on the dates indicated below. At each meeting
those who lecture on the module will outline the topics they will cover, and the
skills they will refer to in their lectures. The purpose is to provide both lecturers
and seminar tutors with a good overview of the how the lectures ‘fit’ with the
seminars and each other. All seminar tutors and (ideally) all module
lecturers are expected to attend these meetings.
6. Schedule of things to Note
PG tutors who have not already had History and PCAP training must do
so in the autumn term.
WEEK 1:
Thursday 2.30-4 p.m.: meet with your seminar groups for the first time.
Thursday 4 - p.m. MMW tutors’ meeting in H302.
WEEK 2: MMW tutors’ meeting, 1-2 p.m., in H402
Discussion of lectures for weeks 3 and 4 by SVD, MB.
WEEK 3: Final seminar list to Jean Noonan and Rainer Horn
WEEK 4: MMW tutors’ meeting, 1-2 p.m., in H402
Discussion of lectures for weeks 5, 7 and 8 by DH, SH.
Week 5: All project titles to be assigned to groups. All students will have
completed and handed in their first essay. All students will have
completed their online skills programme.
WEEK 6: READING WEEK
WEEK 7: Problem students to be reported to RH by the end of this week.
If you have access to the history department’s intranet site you may use
‘Report a Student Problem’ to alert us to any such problems. By weeks
7/8 all students will have completed one essay which will have been
returned, with a written comment sheet. During this term each student
will have had up to 15 minutes for oral feedback on this essay.
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WEEK 8: MMW tutors’ meeting, 1-2 p.m., in H402
Discussion of lectures for weeks 9, 10, 11 and 12 by RH, CM, DB, MB, CH.
WEEK 9: Seminar feedback sheet to be filled in by students. Module
feedback sheets to be returned by student.
WEEK 10: Seminar and module feedback sheets to be retuned to module
director.
SPRING TERM
WEEK 11:
WEEK 12: MMW tutors’ meeting, 1-2 p.m., in H402
Discussion of lectures for weeks 13, 14, 15, 17 and 18 by CR, CM, ML, CH,
TL and CS.
WEEK 13: A meeting to be arranged to discuss and set the June exam
questions.
WEEK 14: All group project presentations to be completed by week 14.
Problem students to be reported to RH by the end of this week. If you
have access to the history department’s intranet site you may use
‘Report a Student Problem’ to alert us to any such problems.
WEEK 15: Group project and individual marks to be returned to director
MMW.
WEEK 16: READING WEEK
WEEK 17:
WEEK 18: MMW tutors’ meeting, 1-2 p.m., in H402
Discussion of lectures for weeks 19 and 20 by JS, RF, RO.
WEEK 19: Seminar feedback sheet to be filled in by students. Module
feedback sheets to be returned by student.
WEEK 20: MMW tutors’ meeting, 1-2 p.m., in H402
Discussion of lectures for weeks 21, 22 and23 by RH, MT, DH.
By the end of week 20 all students will have completed a second essay
on which they will have received oral and written feedback.
Seminar and module feedback sheets to be returned to module director.
SUMMER TERM
WEEK 21:
WEEK 22: By week 22 all students will have completed their final essay.
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WEEK 23: Final essays will have been returned, with a written comment
sheet and oral feedback. Seminar feedback sheet to be filled in by
students. Module feedback sheets to be returned by student.
The seminars in this week should be devoted to exam preparation.
All essay marks for each student, with a final mark noting the best 2 out
of 3, or 3 out of 4 essays, to be returned to the director of MMW.
7. STUDENT PROBLEMS
It is a University requirement that all students attend seminars. Tutors must
keep a record of absence from seminars, and chase up missing students, if
necessary through their personal tutors. Problems such as absence from classes one explained absence per term is acceptable - or the non-production of written
work must be reported. Post-graduate teachers should report all such problems to
the module director, Rainer Horn. All other staff should use the ‘Report a
Problem Student’ available on the history department’s intranet site. You may
also wish to alert the student’s personal tutor to any problem. A list of personal
tutors is available outside the history office. Serious problems should be reported
immediately to both the Undergraduate Secretary (Miss Paula Keeble) and the
Senior Tutor (Carolyn Steedman). Time is set aside at two staff meetings to
discuss student progress, and it is essential that all tutors report student
problems before these meetings.
See appendix 1 for record sheets that will help you keep track of seminar
attendance and essay and project marks. These must be returned at the
end of each term to the module director, Rainer Horn.
8. Skills
The Module is designed to provide each student with a broad knowledge and
understanding of political, social, economic, cultural and ideological aspects of
European history since 1750, and to place that knowledge in the wider context of
world history. We also see the module playing an important role in developing
student skills, both specifically historical and more general transferable skills.
Over the first year students are expected to:
- acquire or improve on their knowledge of a foreign language, and to
begin to use it for historical purposes (Single Honours only)
- write essays on historical topics
- use information sources, both specific to the discipline and general
sources and works of reference
- learn how to observe scholarly protocols: e.g. how to footnote correctly;
how to draw up a bibliography
- access and utilise information on the Internet
- choose from a range of possibilities for using computers
Certain of these skills are learnt in all the modules they will take, but on Making
of the Modern World skills will form part of seminars and there is a skills
programme which all students must follow.
You will see from the lecture and seminar schedule the historical skills that are
linked to each session. These historical skills are made up of the following:
1) Architecture, Memorials, Photography, Art
2) Quantitative methods
3) Fiction, Autobiography, Document Study, Film, Oral History, Music
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In the course of the academic year each tutor must cover four skills [2 in term 1,
and 2 in term 2] in the seminar sessions. Two of the skills listed in 1 above
should be covered, along with two from those listed in 3. [This year quantitative
methods are optional and student may take the optional Computing for Historians
web-based programme if they wish to acquire these skills, see below]. The skills
should be taught within a seminar, possibly in a half-hour slot. Each tutor may
decide which skills he/she wants to cover and when they want to cover them. All
of the skills should be linked with specific lectures.
Each lecturer who gives a lecture on the module should refer to an appropriate
skill for their lecture, and incorporate some exploration of that skill as an
integrated aspect of the lecture.
Skills reading
A wide variety of skills have been incorporated into the course. In many cases,
specialized reading about using particular skills has been included in the reading
list. In addition, a number of general works look at aspects of skills and the
writing of history. Among them the following are amongst the most useful and
up-to-date.
Ludmilla Jordanova History in Practice (2nd ed., 2006) The students have
been requested to purchase this book.
Arthur Marwick The New Nature of History: Knowledge, Evidence, Language
(2001)
John Tosh The Pursuit of History: Aims, Methods and New Directions in the Study
of History (Third Edition, 1999)
None of them fully covers every aspect, each has its own strengths. Jordanova is
strong on the theory of history; Marwick includes a history of the development of
historical studies and hints on writing about history; Tosh concentrates on
sources and methods. You will find it useful to have one or more of these at hand
throughout the course.
In addition, readings on specific topics, collected in John Tosh (ed) Historians on
History (2000) are also extremely useful.
9. ONLINE SKILLS PROGRAMME
In the coming academic year each student taking the MMW module will be
required to complete an online skills programme. The module director will check
to ensure that all students have completed this online programme. As a seminar
tutor you need to be aware that the programme exists, that it offers good
guidance on constructing bibliographies, footnotes, etc., and that students who
are unable to use the conventions need to be encouraged to revisit and, if
necessary, redo the programme until their skills improve. The purpose of this
programme is to help the students write better essays and to become familiar
with referencing. This programme called ‘online training and reference guides’
can be accessed at
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/undergraduate/modules/hi153/online
training/
This page provides access to online training for:
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presentation and referencing
advanced information skills
plagiarism
Each student is required to work through this online skills programme. This should
take you no longer than three hours and the programme must be completed before
week 5 of the first term. As you will see there are quick quizzes to complete in the
‘presentation and referencing’ section of the programme. Successful completion of
the programme requires achieving full marks for these quizzes. You may do these
quizzes as often as you like in order to get the correct answers. We will monitor the
success of every student following this programme by checking the answers to the
Presentation and Referencing
This section of the programme provides essential information and practice
sessions on formatting; quotations; numbers; money; dates; footnotes and
endnotes; bibliographies. These are skills that each student will need for essay
and project work, not just in their first year but throughout their period at
Warwick. The department expects ALL essay work to be presented in the ways
outlined.
Advanced Information Skills
This section of the programme provides important information on how to
approach research and will help students to find resources for their written
assignments. Information is provided on using their reading list, finding history
books and articles, finding alternative books by class mark, finding books using
keyword searches, finding the location of a book, and using online history
resources. There is a test yourself section (Internet Detective).
Plagiarism
The following is an explanation of plagiarism that has been written into the
student handbook and module guide.
When writing essays, always identify your sources for specific information and,
where appropriate, the ideas which you use. It is bad academic practice for a
student to fail to do so, just as it would be for an author writing a book or learned
article. Commissioning research by other persons for your essays constitutes
plagiarism, even if you subsequently re-write the commissioned work. Copying
without acknowledgement from a printed source is as unacceptable as
commissioning research or essays, as is plagiarising another student's essay.
It is equally wrong to reproduce and present as your own work a passage from
another person's writing to which minor changes have been made, e.g., random
alteration of words or phrases, omission or rearrangement of occasional
sentences or phrases within the passage. This remains plagiarism even if the
source is acknowledged in footnotes.
In the third section of the skills programme and for information about what
constitutes plagiarism go to http://www.warwick.ac.uk/services/elearning/plato/.
It is mandatory that students read this information.
If you are still uncertain about what constitutes plagiarism, please talk it over
with either your personal tutor or your seminar tutor.
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10. COMPUTING FOR HISTORIANS
This is an optional skills programme. Some of the students may be
interested in learning how to construct and use databases. If so they can follow
the Computing for Historians section which they can find at
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/res_rec/research/computing_intro
This programme will tell them how to store information, it will show them how to
use databases, how to use excel to create databases, it will show them how to
create and select charts to enhance their written work, it also provides them with
information on how to find online resources, and will guide them to the Statistics
section (and associated online resources) of the Library. This programme takes
about 4 hours to work through and allows them to complete exercises which will
develop their computing skills.
11. Getting Hold of Books and Seminar Readings
For each week’s seminar, highly recommended reading is given under the rubric
`core reading’ . The students have been asked to acquire copies of Bayly, Birth
of the Modern World, Jordanova, History in Practice, and Hobsbawm, Age of
Revolutions, Age of Empire, Age of Capital, Age of Extremes. Multiple copies of
these books are available in the Library. Where possible items of core reading,
articles and book-chapters, have been scanned by the library and are accessible
via the module website. Material that could not be scanned, or that is not
available through JSTOR is often available in multiple copies in boxes listed
alphabetically by author’s name in the Student Loan Collection (SLC) in the
Library.
Copyright regulations restrict us to a certain number of copies (10) of any one
item. If the students cannot get hold of a highly recommended item, other items
on the bibliographies will offer good information. It is intended as a guide and
convenience rather than a last word. Some of the documents for seminars are
available on the Internet.
12. Module Forum A web-based discussion area is available for this module. It
is a space where students can raise questions, exchange opinions and information
with other students. It is not mediated by academic staff though they are free to
join in if they wish to do so. The forum is accessible via
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/undergraduate/modules/hi153/forum
/
Please note: the university has strict guidelines about what is and is not
appropriate material for any part of the university website.
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13. MAKING OF THE MODERN WORLD: GROUP PROJECT
1. A group will consist of 4/5 members, i.e. half of a standard MMW small group.
Therefore, two such presentations will occur according to the groups’ preferences
of weekly topic somewhere between weeks 11-15.
2. Groups should be established by reading week of the autumn term, permitting
six weeks of preparation. Tutors should encourage a realistic focus, e.g. a casestudy of a painting might work better than a survey of History and Art. This
preparation should be monitored by means of a log which will act as an
attendance register and brief description of activities undertaken, e.g. allocation
of reading, preliminary findings, comment on each other’s contributions, dress
rehearsal.
3. The skills tested should be both a) methodological, focusing on one or more of
the skills associated with MMW lectures, including where feasible audio-visual
skills, and b) presentational, testing communicative skills (audibility, coherence,
clarity, use of audio-visual aids, time-keeping). Each member of the group
should speak for at least five minutes, but no longer than seven. It is recognised
that each presentation will take up at least half of two seminars. Both group
presentations should not be made in a single slot as experience teaches that this
leads to frantic overload.
4. Feedback should be given by a combination of peer review (each individual will
award a mark for the work of each member of their group), as well as the tutor’s
comments, to be given face-to-face in a ca. fifteen-minute feedback surgery.
This should consist of praise and suggestions on individual performance, and an
overall mark. [This overall mark is made up of the log report, the presentation
and the peer mark].
5. Groups might if they so wish make their presentation available by means of a
web posting (e.g. of a PowerPoint presentation, or a Sitebuilder page).
6. Penalties for non-cooperation including absenteeism from preparatory
meetings, failing to turn up to the presentation, etc. students will be asked to
submit a long essay (4,000 words) in lieu.
7. Part-timer students or those who have a legitimate excuse for not being able
to meet up outside of seminar times, will be allowed to fulfil this task by means of
a 3,000-word essay.
Part-Time Students and the Group Project
Part-time students may, depending on circumstances, undertake the group project.
The organisation of the group project for part-time students will follow the same
guidelines as those for full-time students.
If circumstances are not amenable to part-time students undertaking the group project
then an essay of 3,000 words will be completed instead by individual students.
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Guidance
A list of possible project titles can be found below.
The following are the elements that should inform the project work:
1



2
Information-gathering
Creating bibliographies
Searching for information in libraries
Assimilating information from books, articles and other sources

Critical and Analytic Skills
Use of sources: identifying bias and scope of sources
Awareness of different kinds of historical writing, and different kinds of
historical question
Awareness of historiography



Oral Communication skills
Making a presentation to the larger group on the project
Handling questions on the project
Discussing ideas with peers and tutors



Working with others
Allocating and sharing responsibilities within the group
Making presentations to a wider group
Evaluating and constructively criticising group work

Time management
Managing and organising group and individual time within the project



Intellectual Skills
Evaluating conflicting information
Arguing logically
Challenging assumptions


3
4
5
6
Presentations
By week five you will be assigned a group to work in and a project title. You will
be working as a team. This means that as a group you need to plan a series of
meetings with one another and organise amongst yourselves: the choice of topic,
who will do what parts of the research, who will present which bits of the
material. You will need to decide what sources you are going to use, whether
your project lends itself to the use of illustrations, statistics, music, etc., you will
need to divide up your time as individuals and as a group and work out a
timetable which will allow you to meet to discuss progress, organise material and
address any problems or issues that arise.
It is expected that all members of the group will pull their weight
Planning your research
Once you have selected your topic the group will need to think about the
following:
Which sources are you going to use?
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Can you divide the topic into a series of sub-questions that you can answer and
assign to members of the group?
How will these questions help you to answer the question posed in the project
title?
How will you allocate tasks within the group?
How will you divide up the time between getting the project title and making the
presentation?
Keeping a log
Each group must keep a written record of its work. This log, when completed,
should:
briefly record the work undertaken by each member (one short paragraph per
member)
record the duration, attendance at, and frequency of group meetings
include comments on how the group interacted – were there any problems and
how were they overcome?
This log should be no longer than 2 x A4 sheets of typescript (font size
12, with 1 ½ spacing). This log will be handed in on the day the
presentation is made.
Presentations
What is the purpose of your presentation?
Each speaker has no more than 7 minutes in which to present, therefore you
need to decide on the order of speakers.
Is there going to be an audio-visual element in the presentation? If so, you need
to make sure that you have the equipment you need.
Preparing and Giving your Presentation
Focus on getting across a few clear points: think about using visual aids, such as
a handout/OHP, powerpoint to assist in making your points clear
Think about using examples or illustrations to make your presentation interesting
Think about who in the group is going to use audio-visual sources
Make sure you have a clear plan about what each group member will talk about
and when they will talk.
Make sure everyone is prepared.
Practice and rehearse your presentation before it is made in class.
Rehearse out loud in front of your own group. Get all the members of your group
to give a constructive assessment of an individual performance.
Try to encourage discussion with, and questions from the audience at the end of
the presentation. Be prepared to answer questions from the audience.
Acknowledge your audience by maintaining eye contact, looking at them helps to
involve them in your presentation.
Avoid reading from a script, and try instead to speak directly to your audience in
your own words, based on all the reading and planning you have done to prepare.
Remember to pause and not to speak too quickly.
The presentation will take place during your seminar time between weeks 11 and
15. This will be agreed between the group and your tutor.
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Assessment
Assessment for the group project will make up 10 CATS points. It will be made
up of the log report (25%), the presentation (50%) and peer mark (25%). The
tutor will provide you with written and/or oral feedback on the quality of your
presentation. The presentation will be judged on:
Intellectual clarity and cohesion; range of materials used and their interpretation
verbal clarity (for instance, clear introduction, general presentation skills such as
pace, volume, body language)
use of illustrative material/audio-visual aids.
Overall, the intellectual content of the presentation, the presentation itself,
timing, teamwork and discussion will all be assessed. (There is a sample mark
sheet in the appendix).
Immediately after the presentation each member of the group making the presentation
will be asked to give a mark to each member of the group, including yourself,
according to your assessment of each other’s relative contribution to the work which
resulted in the final project presentation. This will be confidential and be seen only
by the tutor. In the appendix you will find a mark sheet to help you with this marking.
If you consider that a group member has done absolutely no work towards the project,
you must award 0, but it should be stressed that this should not normally occur.
To group members you consider to have contributed in an average way (just about
doing enough), you will award a mark of 2.
To group members you consider to have contributed more than average, you will
award a mark of 4.
You must award a mark to everyone on the list without exception. This mark will
make up 25% of the entire project mark.
The final mark for each individual will be decided by a combination of the overall
mark given to the group by the tutor, the mark you have given yourself plus the mark
given to you by other members of the group, and the mark given for the log report.
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Project titles
For guidance with reading check the bibliography attached to the relevant
lecture/s on the MMW module.
1. What, exactly, is ‘Enlightenment’? How should ‘enlightenment’ be attained,
and is it accessible to everyone?
You may find the following website useful:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/modsbook10.html
2. How different was the quality of life in 1750 in China and Europe?
Be specific about whose quality of life you are talking about, how you can know
about it, and what the wider implications of your evidence might be in your
understanding of comparisons between Europe and the rest of the world at that
point in time.
3. How have perceptions of global poverty shifted between the 18 th and 20th
centuries?
4. How is film useful to the historian?
Nationalism/Colonialism/Resistance/Representation and
The Battle of Algiers (Gillo Pontecorvo, Italy/Algeria, 1966, 116 mins)
The film re-enacts the Algerian war for independence from France between 1952
and 1962 following the activities of a group belonging to the National Liberation
Front. The film made a splash in the 1960s, again during the Vietnam era, and
(in part due to the death of the filmmaker) was commercially re-released in
2006. It has also been shown in the US Pentagon as a way for the US military
establishment to understand the current occupation of Iraq and the challenges it
presents.
Is it a "primary text" to be analysed or a media event to be investigated? Is film
important for its narrative content or for what it provokes within and beyond the
experience of spectatorship? Other questions that might be addressed include:
what does the film offer to the understanding of nationalism in the modern
world? What is the relationship between nationalism, colonialism, and anticolonial struggle? How do these larger themes in turn engage with the idea of
"identity" as it emerged in the modern world? What is the relationship between
specific national histories and larger historical themes?
Finally, why do certain forms of historical representation endure? What gives this
film its sticking power?
Sampler of further reading:
F. Fanon, “On National Culture” in The Wretched Earth , C. Farrington, trans.
Harmondsworth, 1967, pp. 166-199.
F. Fanon, “This is the Voice of Algeria” (1959) in A Dying Colonialism. New York:
Grove Weidenfield, 1965, pp. 69-97. Also in A. Mattlelart and S. Siegelaub
eds., Communication and Class Struggle: Volume 2. Liberation, Socialism.
New York: International General, 1983, pp. 211-220.
16
E. Shohat and R. Stam, Unthinking Eurocentrism: Multiculturalism and the Media.
Routledge: London, 1994, pp. 248-255.
5. Industrial Revolution produced dramatic social changes, but it also fostered
new types of ‘enlightened’ methods of government – reports, surveys,
investigations, etc., which were used to document, order and control the lives of
the working classes. What do such changes reveal about the social and political
legacies of the Enlightenment?
6. Why has socialism tended to be more successful in peasant countries in the
twentieth century rather than industrial ones?
7. What was ‘modern’ about the imperialism of the nineteenth and early twentieth
centuries?
The following website might be useful:
http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/mod/modsbook34.html
8. Compare the resistance against fascism/National Socialism in Germany and
Italy.
9. Contrast the experiences of women’s role in public life in a European and nonEuropean country in the nineteenth OR twentieth century?
10. The following project might be completed by the two groups within the same
seminar. One group explores the visual representations of colonialism and the
second group examines the visual representations of postcolonialism/independence. Each group should work separately. Part of this
project might involve examining the ways in which artefacts/images are
preserved, how they are preserved and displayed, the intended audiences for the
artefacts and images and the role of museums in preserving and presenting such
material. It might also involve the use of photographs and an exploration as to
how photographs were constructed and utilised in colonial and post-colonial
settings.
For this project you might find the following website useful:
http://www.library.yale.edu/~mpowell/victorianper.html
11. What factors have led to the global emergence of communal (i.e. religious)
violence in the world since the 1970s?
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14. Teaching Observation
All non-permanent members of staff must have one of their seminar classes
observed by a permanent member of staff before week 15 of term 2. Please talk
to Rainer Horn about this in term one. In the appendices you will find a Teaching
Observation Form.
15. Assessment and Assignments
Students will write 3 x 1,500 word essays over the course of the year:
So that students are not overburdened by deadlines for first-year essays, all
MMW students should complete their first essay by week 5 of term 1. It would
also be a good idea to ask your seminar group when they would like to hand in
the second and third essays. Essay two needs to be ready in term two and the
third essay in term three.
Skills Requirement. At least ONE of these essays must be a Skills Question. This
must EITHER be drawn from the list of Skills Questions in the Course Handbook
OR approved by the seminar tutor.
An optional ‘Computing for Historians’ programme is available online at
http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/res_rec/research/computing_intro
If students follow this ‘Computing for Historians’ programme they may use the
database skills they have acquired in one of their short essays (most likely the
skills essay).
All essays submitted must be of a satisfactory standard in terms of length,
presentation and content in order to be accepted by seminar tutors.
All short essays must be submitted by the deadlines set by course tutors. The
deadline for the final essay is the end of the third week of the Summer Term.
Late essays will be regarded as non-submitted work, unless there is good cause
(e.g. illness supported by a medical certificate). Penalty deductions will be made
from the mark for each day by which the essay is late calculated at the prevailing
university rate. (see Undergraduate Handbook for details)
Penalties for non-submission of essays. A mark of zero will be recorded for any
essay which is not submitted. The average for the overall assessment mark will
in this case be calculated over the total number of essays required, and will result
in a much lower average.
Assessment is made up in the following way:
For Single Honours and Joint Honours (30 CATs)
Group project:
One-hour examination (June):
Best two of three assessed essays
10 CATS
10 CATS
10 CATS
Assessment for Part-time students (30 CATs)
Group project OR 3,000 word essay:
One-hour examination (June):
Best two of three assessed essays
10 CATS
10 CATS
10 CATS
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Resit procedures
Single honours History students:
Failure in the June exam will involve resitting a one-hour examination in
September.
Failure in the assessed essays component will normally involve making up the
deficient essay(s).
A candidate who fails the assessed component through non submission of the
required number of essays will normally be required to make up the missing
essays and produce a supplementary essay.
Failure in the group project will normally involve submission of further
appropriate assessed work.
A candidate who fails the group project through non participation will normally be
required to produce a supplementary piece of work.
Joint Degree Students:
Failure in the examined component (June exam) will involve resitting a one
hour examination in September.
Failure in the assessed essays component will normally involve making up the
deficient essay(s).
A candidate who fails the assessed component through not handing in the
required number of essays will normally be required to make up the missing
essays and produce a supplementary essay.
A candidate who fails the assessed component through non submission of the
required number of essays will normally be required to make up the missing
essays and produce a supplementary essay.
Failure in the group project will normally involve submission of further
appropriate assessed work.
A candidate who fails the group project through non participation will normally be
required to produce a supplementary piece of work.
Marking Criteria for first year work can be found in the First–Year
Student Handbook and the Staff Handbook
16. Questionnaires and Student Feedback
Student feedback plays a central role in enabling staff to monitor and improve the
quality of their teaching. It is departmental policy to solicit feedback from
students in all modules twice a year - at the end of term one and at the end of
the module - for reasons spelt out in the student handbook entry reproduced
below.:
Regular feedback from students plays an important part in planning
modules and developing teaching skills within the department.
In order to ensure that students can make a direct impact on the ways in
which they are being taught, every tutor asks students to complete a
questionnaire at the end of the first term and circulates a written report on
this feedback prior to discussing with the students concerned any resulting
changes. At the end of the module tutors will circulate a second
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questionnaire, so that they can take account of student comments in any
revisions they make for the next year.
(In core modules these processes will usually be organised not by seminar
tutors but by the module director.)
The forms to be used (in terms 1 and 2) for MMW feedback are reproduced
below. Form 1 relates to the lectures and Form 2 relates to the seminar. Please
ensure that both forms are filled in before the end of each term.
Feedback is best solicited by leaving students alone for the final 15
minutes of a seminar: a far higher rate of return will be achieved by
making time for students to fill in the forms before leaving the room,
rather than sending them away with blank forms to be handed in later.
In order to reassure both students and higher university authorities that the
department responds constructively to concerns raised through student
questionnaires, the module director is required to report to the Chair on the
feedback received. In January a copy of the module director’s report is given to
the students on the feedback received before Christmas, a copy is also lodged in
the office. Further seminar and module feedback is solicited from students in
week 9 of the second term.
The Student Handbooks also contain advice on what students should do if they
feel that a module/seminar tutor is unresponsive to complaints:
Very occasionally, students may feel that a module tutor is unresponsive
to their concerns. If this happens to you there are a number of steps that
you can take.
You can talk to your personal tutor about the problem, and ask him or her
to intervene either with the tutor concerned or with the Head of
Department. (If, as could happen, it is your personal tutor who is the
teacher with whom you are having problems, then you should make an
appointment to see the Head of Department.) Alternatively, you can ask
one of the student representatives on the SSLC to take the issue up either
in an SSLC meeting or privately with the staff member responsible for
convening the SSLC.
While most problems can in fact be sorted out by discussing them directly
with the teacher concerned, if this does not work you should not hesitate
to take the problem to a third party in one of the ways outlined above.
It is in the interests of everyone involved that any such problems are
known about and dealt with as soon as possible.
Making use of these procedures, when appropriate, is both your right and
your duty. The department relies on students to draw to its attention
problems that cannot be resolved in direct discussion with tutors. Do not
just let things slide: be a good citizen.
Problems
If you have any problems regarding this module you should consult
with the Module Director, Dr Gerd Rainer Horn.
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APPENDICES
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
seminar attendance sheet and essay marks for terms 1, 2 and 3.
essay feedback sheet
student seminar feedback sheet
student module feedback sheet
log report (for group project)
individual mark for each member of the project group
assessment of group project presentation
teaching observation form
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FORM 1
History Department Student Feedback
Questionnaire, 2008-09
Name of Module: Making of the Modern World…….
Name of Seminar Tutor………………………………………..
strongly
agree
agree
no firm
strongly
opinion disagree disagree
The objectives of the module were clear
    
The module succeeded in its objectives
    
The lectures were interesting
    
The lectures were well delivered
    
The seminars were stimulating
    
It was easy to participate in the seminars
    
Feedback on essays was good
    
The library resources were good
    
The book shop had what I needed
    
strongly agree
agree
no firm disagree strongly
opinion
disagree
Please write any further comments on the back of this form
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LOG REPORT
How many meetings of the group were held? ____________
How long, on average, was each meeting? ______________
Note the attendance at each meeting.
Write one paragraph for each group member noting what they did for the project
Note if there were any problems and how these problems were overcome.
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Individual Mark for Each Member of the Project Group
Team member being marked:______________________
Please give a mark ranging from 0 to 4, where 4 recognises an excellent
engagement with the different elements of the project, 2 recognises an average
contribution to the project, and 0 recognises a non-existent or below-average
contribution to the project.
Use the following guidelines to help you come to a mark for your colleague.
Contribution
Contribution
Contribution
Contribution
to
to
to
to
project
project
project
project
organisation:
meetings:
research:
presentation:
Mark: _______________
Name of marker: _____________________
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ASSESSMENT OF THE GROUP PROJECT PRESENTATION
(Overall mark from 100, 10 marks per heading)
DATE OF PRESENTATION
MEMBERS OF PROJECT TEAM
Clarity of argument presented
Comparative Element
Intellectual coherence
Quality of analysis
Use of appropriate range of sources
Selection of information
Clarity of oral presentation
Effective use of aids
Ability to Answer Questions
Time keeping
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