Class Meetings
Tue. / Thur.
9:50 AM - 11:40 AM
Library, MacLab |
Student Hours
Mon. / Wed. / Fri.
9 am - 12 Noon
Watkins 207 |
Course Description
Digital History equips students with digital tools for historical research. Students explore a range of techniques to complement traditional methods of historical analysis, including the generation of chronological and geocoded data, data mining, and textual analysis. Students apply these skills in the production and visualization of original historical content in a variety of digital formats.
Learning Objectives
- Frame data analytics questions and design appropriate methodology for authentic contexts.
- Apply methodology appropriate to a disciplinary context.
- Demonstrate skill in scientific computing.
- Interpret and translate data into actionable ideas and communicate them visually, orally, and in writing.
- Evaluate implications associated with the pervasive creation and use of data.
Required Reading
Students will not have to purchase any books for this course. All readings for this course will be provided via Zotero, which all Digital History students will be required to download. Zotero is a citation management software with expansive features for managing research. So students must download Zotero and can do so here.
Students must purchase a Reclaim Hosting (reclaimhosting.com) subscription ($35) to host their digital presence and post each practicum in blog form. We will review this subscription and how to set up WordPress on the platform in the first week of class.
Assignments
- Participation (15%):
- Since this class is predicated on class discussion, participation is central to the learning environment. I will take class attendance each day. Each day of class will receive a grade. If you attend, you will start with an 85. Participating improves that grade. Behavior detrimental to the learning environment (for example, using your phone, using your computer for activities unrelated to the class, any other activities that distract other students, or being generally disruptive) will reduce that grade. After two absences, not attending class will receive a zero for that day. I will also provide excused absences if you let me know that you will be absent before class. I will provide an alternative assignment that you can complete to receive full credit. If you are sick, e-mail me before class, and I will provide this assignment. Do not come to class sick.
- Four Blog posts (10% each):
- Digital History Students will complete four assignments on their website as blog posts. These posts will discuss their embedded or pasted screenshots of their work for that week with a discussion of their thoughts on the process, their successes, and their struggles.
- Database practicum: build a simple database for your project and visualize the data in Tableau.
- Text analysis practicum: Use Voyant for textual analysis on a group of texts related to your topic.
- Spatial History Practicum: build a Knight Lab Story, a Palladio Network Graph, or a Palladio Spatial visualization.
- Omeka practicum: build a simple Omeka site and link to it from your blog.
- Final Project (30%):
- Each Digital History student will produce an independent project answering a historical question of their choosing that will include two of the digital methods explored in this course. It should be a minimum of 2000 words. Along with the final project, each student will post a process paper on their website that catalogs the process of producing the project itself. The process paper should describe the challenges or complications the student faced in organizing the data, creating the visualization, etc. The final project will be posted on their website.
- The project can be produced in one of two frameworks: WordPress or Omeka. Make sure to understand the genre of the framework. For instance, Omeka is designed for digital exhibitions. If you use Omeka, that is included as one of your two tools. If you use WordPress, you need to include two other tools in the project. These tools could be a database and Tableau visualizations or a Knight Lab Storymap and Voyant text analysis.
- Presentation (15%):
- Each student will present their final project on one of the last two days of class. The project, at this point, is expected to be incomplete but in the final stages of completion. This presentation should do three things: 1) indicate the argument or goal of the project, 2) indicate the tools you used and how the helped you accomplish that goal, and 3) indicate where you think your successes and struggles with the project lay. The class will then provide feedback to help you as you finish your project.
Late-Work Policy
This policy excludes the final assignment because I cannot provide an extension outside of extreme situations due to limits on when I have to turn in grades. Otherwise, see below.
If you request an extension 24 hours BEFORE the due date via email, I will provide a no-questions-asked (no excuse needed) 48-hour extension for an assignment. If the assignment is turned in after the 48-hour extension, the assignment will be deducted 10 points. Longer extensions are available only at the professor’s discretion on a case-by-case basis. If an extension is not requested 24 hours before the due date, the assignment will be deducted 10 points if the assignment is turned in no later than 7 days after the due date. Exceptions to this policy can be made at the discretion of the professor based on the student’s excuse. Every seventh day, the assignment is deducted another 10 points.
Example:
If an assignment is due February 1, it will be reduced by 10 points if it is turned in (without an extension) between February 2 and February 7. It will be reduced 20 points if it is turned it between February 8 and February 14, so on and so forth.
Grading
Queens uses a plus/minus grade scale: B- receives less than 3 points, for instance. Grades in this class will follow the same pattern with one exception. Here are the numeric grades associated with each letter grade:
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A = 90-100
B+ = 89-87
B = 86-83
B- = 82-80
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C+ = 79-77
C = 76-73
C- = 72-70
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D+ = 69-67
D = 66-60
F = 59-0
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Notice a couple inconsistencies. One, I do not give an A-. In my experience, if you get an A, you deserved it without qualification. Also, there is not a D-. This difference is because Queens does not include a D-.
Honor Code
The Honor Code, which permeates all phases of university life, is based on three fundamental principles. It assumes that Queens students: a) are truthful at all times, b) respect the property of others, and c) are honest in tests, examinations, term papers, and all other academic assignments. Please contact the Instructor if you believe a violation of the Honor Code has occurred. It is a violation of the Honor Code for a student to be untruthful concerning the reason for a class absence. See The Honor Code Book for more information on the process in the event of a suspected violation.
Every student is expected to produce their own work based on their own ideas and cite anyone else’s ideas or words appropriately. Certain material that an average person would consider common knowledge does not need to be cited. Such information would include that Christopher Columbus sailed across the Atlantic Ocean in 1492 or that the American Revolution began in 1776. Other information, however, needs to be cited if it did not originate in your mind. See the Queens Library’s page on plagiarism: https://library.queens.edu/plagiarism/.
Student Accessibility Services
Queens University of Charlotte is committed to making reasonable accommodations to assist students with disabilities. If you have a disability which may impact your performance, attendance or grades in this course and require accommodations, you must first contact Student Accessibility Services at sashelp@queens.edu. The steps for receiving accommodations must be completed before accommodations can be given. The steps are available on the Student Accessibility Homepage. SAS is responsible for coordinating classroom accommodations and other services for students with disabilities. Please note that students are responsible for sharing their letter of accommodation with their instructors to receive classroom accommodations.
Student Complaint Process
Queens University of Charlotte is committed to providing an educational climate that is conducive to the personal and professional development of each individual. To ensure that commitment, the university has developed procedures for students to pursue grievances within the university community should such action become necessary. A student who has an unresolved disagreement or dissatisfaction with a faculty or staff member, another student, a student group, or an administrator has the right to file a written complaint without prejudicing his or her status with the university. For more information, please visit the Student Complaint Process page. For information regarding the online student complaint process, please visit the online student complaint process page.
QAlert
QAlert is the emergency notification system Queens uses to notify the campus community of an emergency, inclement weather, or class cancellations. It sends messages about the status of a given situation, as well as other details the campus needs to know. Students, faculty, and staff are automatically registered for QAlert through the university’s enterprise resource.
Religious Holidays
If any assignments or due dates interfere with your personal religious observation, I will be happy to make accommodations. Remember, within the first two weeks of the semester, the student must let me know the dates of major religious holidays on which the student will be absent or unavailable due to religious observances. Please, see the Queens Office for Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion religious holiday calendar:
E-mail Communication
When writing emails to me, be sure to include a subject line, address me properly by my title and last name, and sign off with your name. Proper email formatting skills are required in post-university life.
Each student is issued a University e-mail address (username@queens.edu) upon admittance. The University uses this e-mail address for official communication with students. Students are expected to read e-mails sent to this account on a regular basis. Failure to read and react to University communications in a timely manner does not absolve the student from knowing and complying with the content of the communications.