Advanced Research Seminar in American History

Module overview

Within this module, you will have the opportunity to study different areas of American history. This will take place in student-led discussions, which are convened and supported by historians with experience in US history in varied forms. You will identify themes and subjects worthy of further analysis and discussion, with guidance and support from staff. As a group, you will work collaboratively to identify areas of particular interest, formulate reading lists, and determine research questions, all with the support of academics. This is with the expectation that these discussions and studies will enable you to undertake independent research at the cutting edge of American historiography and methodology.

Aims and Objectives

Learning Outcomes

Subject Specific Intellectual and Research Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

apply your developed knowledge of American history, structuring your ideas and research findings into well-ordered written assignments.
engage with historiography and theoretical frameworks, contributing to the debates relating to American history and its relationship to the wider world.
undertake a thorough critical analysis and assessment of a variety of textual, visual and material culture sources.

Knowledge and Understanding

Having successfully completed this module, you will be able to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of:

a wide variety of primary sources relating to American history.
a wide variety of secondary source material relating to American history, including theoretical frameworks used in the field.
the history of America, in particular the different approaches taken by historians to American history.

Transferable and Generic Skills

Having successfully completed this module you will be able to:

use to good effect textual, visual and material culture sources, synthesising this material to develop cogent and persuasive arguments.
utilise and develop your time-management skills.
research complex historical questions and communicate your findings convincingly and concisely in written assignments.

Learning and Teaching

Teaching and learning methods

Teaching methods include seminars. Learning methods include close analysis of a range of primary sources and discussion of key themes and ideas.

Study time
Type	Hours
Seminar	24
Completion of assessment task	50
Preparation for scheduled sessions	50
Wider reading or practice	26
Total study time	150

Resources & Reading list

Textbooks

Cynthia Miller-Idriss (2020). Hate in the Homeland: the New Global Far Right. Princeton University Press.

Richard Hofstadter (1996). The Paranoid Style in American Politics, and Other Essays. Harvard University Press.

David K. Johnson (2004). The Lavender Scare: the Cold War Persecution of Gays and Lesbians in the Federal Government. University of Chicago Press.

Elaine Frantz Parson (2016). Ku-Klux: The Birth of the Klan during Reconstruction. University of North Carolina Press.

Assessment

Summative

This is how we’ll formally assess what you have learned in this module.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Written assignment	100%

Referral

This is how we’ll assess you if you don’t meet the criteria to pass this module.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Resubmit assessments	100%

Repeat

An internal repeat is where you take all of your modules again, including any you passed. An external repeat is where you only re-take the modules you failed.

Breakdown
Method	Percentage contribution
Written assignment	100%

Repeat Information

Repeat type: Internal & External