Module Catalogue 2025/26

Pre Requisite Comment

N/A

Co Requisite Comment

N/A

Aims

Researching History will build on the Stage 1 modules Evidence & Argument and Historical Sources & Methods, allowing students to develop and practice their research skills by undertaking an extended independent essay, on a topic of their choosing. Since no two fields of history present precisely the same research challenges, this topic must be distinct from those studied in the Stage 1 modules – that is, dealing with a different country or region in a similar time period, or the same country/region in a different time period (or both) – in order to broaden students’ experience.

Outline Of Syllabus

Sessions will include coverage of refining a research question, searching databases of archival resources, calibrating a thesis statement, outlining an argument, synthesising secondary literature, analysing primary sources, and improving writing clarity and similar skills-based modelling of the research method.

Intended Knowledge Outcomes

By the end of this modules, students will:

•       understand some of the conceptual and methodological approaches relevant to research in History
•       understand the key themes and research challenges of an additional period/field of History
•       have an in-depth knowledge of that topic, based on primary and secondary material they have gathered and analysed themselves
•       know how to devise a research question and gather primary and secondary material in response to the question

Intended Skill Outcomes

•       planning, researching and developing independent self-directed work
•       gathering, synthesising and critically analysing a body of primary evidence and relevant secondary scholarship
•       structuring, explaining, and supporting an original argument in an extended piece of writing

Teaching Rationale And Relationship

This is a guided independent study module yielding an independent research project. Due to this, we are asking for less contact time for students to explore different research pathways and resources without fear of running out of time, and taking care to structure a consistent and supportive teaching spine throughout the semester to help them learn the process of doing research by breaking it down into actionable tasks, modelled in class but also with opportunities for students to apply it to their projects in seminar. That task list will avoid any drift arising from the slight reduction in contact time.

Assessment Rationale And Relationship

The formative assessment is intended to ensure that students begin the process of refining research questions and resultant thesis statement and project outline.

The extended essay will give students the chance to demonstrate the effectiveness of their independent research and their skills in planning and executing a project. As it will be the first time that students bring together their skills of gathering and analysing primary and secondary material in a sustained way, it will be valuable practice for the dissertation, which forms a major part of their final year.

Study-abroad, non-Erasmus exchange and Loyola students spending semester 1 only are required to finish their assessment while in Newcastle. Where an exam is present, an alternative form of assessment will be set and where coursework is present, an alternative deadline will be set. Details of the alternative assessment will be provided by the module leader.

General Notes

N/A