Exploration of Past Events through Authentic, Firsthand Documents
In the world of academic pursuits, History 280: Approaches to American History stands out as a course that encourages students to think like historians. This unique course format, as Shannon FitzGerald, Social Sciences Correspondent, explains, centres on primary sources as the foundation for historical understanding.
By engaging deeply with original documents, students are granted direct insight into historical events and perspectives. These documents can range from diaries, letters, speeches, newspapers, government records, and personal narratives. For instance, currently, the class is unpacking documents related to the 'Little Rock Nine,' the first African-American teenagers who integrated Central High School in September 1957. The documents include census records, newspaper articles, telephone transcripts, and memoirs.
A critical close reading of these documents is necessary to uncover important details. Reading transcripts conversationally helps in understanding the real, complex person and what motivated them. Understanding how systematic inequalities felt to different figures in 1957 Little Rock, Arkansas can be attempted by reading transcripts conversationally.
However, identifying critical information from the mass of assigned documents can be a challenge for the budding historian. Shannon FitzGerald advises not only to lean in but to dive deep when working with historical sources. A specialized approach to each category of document is necessary, with a different mindset required for a Supreme Court decision compared to a telephone transcript.
Critical evaluation of sources is equally important to understand their context, authorship, purpose, and potential biases. Shannon FitzGerald believes that working with historical sources can provide a strange (but really cool) sense of connection to admirable figures from the past.
Moreover, comparative inquiry where multiple types of primary materials are juxtaposed to capture complexity and contesting viewpoints is an essential part of the course. This method encourages active engagement with the past on its own terms rather than through pre-filtered accounts.
The course readings consist of primary sources from three seminal periods in US history: The School Integration Crisis in Little Rock, Arkansas of 1957-58, changes in the Federal Government's Native American policies in the 1920s, and the Salem Witch Trials of 1692-193.
History 280 also trains students in methods of locating, analyzing, and contextualizing original documents. The course is unique, with one lecture and two seminars per week. The course assignments and discussions focus on primary source materials related to key moments in American history.
Online primary source collections, such as digitized documents from government archives, personal papers, or period newspapers, support this work by providing accessible original materials that students can analyze directly.
In summary, the unique course format exemplified by History 280 centers on primary sources as the foundation for historical understanding, emphasizing analytical skills, critical thinking, and original interpretation rooted in direct evidence rather than secondary summaries. This approach, as Shannon FitzGerald suggests, is essential for creating history from primary documents.
By immersing themselves in historical documents, students in History 280 are not only learning about past events but also fostering their education-and-self-development by gaining critical thinking skills. This deep exploration into primary sources allows them to develop a unique understanding of historical perspectives, including the 'Little Rock Nine' integration crisis, by engaging with original diaries, speeches, memoirs, and more.
