HISTORY EXTENSIONWhat it’s all about!

Who can do this course?A 1 unit course offered for Ancient and Modern studentsPrerequisite: one year 11 history course.Required: you must be studying ancient and/or modern in year 12.

What is it all about?This course is completely different to any history you have studied before.This course focuses on historiography, that is:

The study of how and why history has been recorded

It is history from a different perspective – the historians.How have historians written history and why have they bothered?

Some themes and issues raisedWhat is ‘history’?

The philosophy of ‘history’ Can the truth be achieved in the search

of history? Is our understanding

of history merely an ‘interpretation’?

Are there any facts left in history or is it ‘faction’?

Who are the historians? What are their AIMS in writing history? From ancient through

medieval to modern historians…

Eg Herodotus to Bede, Gibbon to Von Ranke, Marx to Derrida

Who have been the historians?

What has been their purpose in writing history?

Themes and IssuesHow and why has history changed over time?

Oral stories and myths Written Narratives Political and Religious Propaganda History as a science “Total History” Revisionist and Post Modernist History

Themes and IssuesThe rise of ‘other’ histories that have traditionally been ‘ignored’ in favour of ‘Big History’ and ‘Great Man History’

History of womenHistory of the colonised /

indigenous perspectivesHistory of ordinary peoples eg

peasantsSocial histories

Postmodernist History!?!No ‘truth’ in history?! Is History just all

fiction anyway? MAYBE

^

Themes and IssuesHistory and the media… changing communications

BOOKS

NEWSPAPERS MAGAZINES

TELEVISION

YOU TUBE / INTERNET

INTERNET

FILM

Themes and IssuesDo TV/Film count as History?? What about historical fiction?What is the value of such ‘history’??

Jane Austen as History???She provides insight into Victorian England’s: Values Fashion Manners, etiquette Family unit Social-classes

This is a new approach to historySo the question: what counts as history?

Course OutlineTopic 1 What is History?

Historiography – where we study the history of how history has been created, constructed and recorded. We look at the historians throughout history, how and why they have made history.

Topic 2 Case StudyWe examine one person or issue and look at how the historians have written about it over time. We pay attention to conflicting histories, historical debates and why there are differing ‘histories’ of the one issue/person. CGHS studies Elizabeth I the way historians have differently interpreted her leadership, policies and image since the 16th century.

Case Study:How has Queen Elizabeth’s

reign been portrayed throughout history?

Why are there “different histories” of her life/reign?

Feisty and silly Queenie on Blackadder

QE’s own commissioned portrait 16th C. CEWarrior Queen??

Various film interpretations

Rubber ducky Liz!!

Horrible Histories TV!!

The first history book of Liz – published 17th C.

Topic 3 Major ProjectStudents choose a topic/issue of interest to them

(ancient, medieval, modern) to examine the historiographical debates and history of it.

Your approach to this is modeled in the class case study (Queen Elizabeth)

Past Project Topics2012 student topics: MODERN HISTORY The Bombings of Japan: Was there any alternative? The Question of the Armenian “Genocide” Historiographical debates surrounding the Nanking

MassacreEARLY MODERN HISTORY

Catherine the Great: varying interpretations of her leadership

Historiographical debate surrounding Rousseau’s influence on the French Revolution.MEDIEVAL HISTORY

Different interpretations of the causes of the English Reformation (Henry VIII)

A study of the modern historiographical thought of the impact of the Norman Conquest on England

Other past projectsRevising the HolocaustKing Arthur in History and LegendMarie Antoinette: Saint or Sinner? (pictured right)Tiananmen SquareThe Killing Fields of CambodiaNational Museum of Australia and the History WarsHistoriography of gender in the Salem Witch TrialsThe historical portrayal of Ned Kelly in the media Amazonian Warrior Women: hisotriographical debate: fact or fiction?Competing histories of Malcolm XWas Pharaoh Akhenaten the forerunner of Judaism?

Major Project 40Trial HSC 10

Total Assessment 50 (1 unit course)

There will be a Midcourse Exam which will be partially assessable

Format of Midcourse, Trial and HSC Exam2 hours 2 essays: - Q1 on Topic 1 What is History- Q2 on Topic 2 Elizabeth case study

Skills developedAnalytical thinking / critical thinkingWritten communication and

expressionOral communication, debating,

discussionMedia discernment and critiqueResearch skillsSelf motivation and independent

research

Pathways to…

Professions

Journalism

Media and Communications

Teaching

History and Archaeology

Philosophy

Business

Law

Librarians

Museums and Historic Sites

Writing

You should consider it if:You have a passion and enthusiasm for any history –history nerds only need apply! You are achieving good marks in 2U history; eg a Band 4-6 levelYou’re interested in philosophy and ideas and/or arguing and debatingYou’re planning to do history at university.

Other university subjects it will help with: research based, writing/essay based, law/communications/media etcYou’d like to improve your understanding of the ideas and concepts, skills and practice of ancient and/or modern history

Some final thoughtsWindshuttle vs Reynolds

Sparked the History Wars in Australia

Polarised debate on Australian History

Was Australia settled or invaded?

Some final thoughts

David Irving – Holocaust Denial Revises traditional history of the

holocaust and Nazi Germany Denies the Holocaust Happened!!