Classroom Participation: (25%)

This course will be structured around student led discussions. Students will be expected to come to each class having read the material assigned for the day and prepared to analyze it. In class, we will first develop a complex understanding of the author’s argument, then address the implications of this argument towards our larger understanding of history and the world around us, and finally evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of this argument. Informed participation can include summarizing core aspects of the argument, drawing attention to key passages in the text, asking for points of clarification, presenting questions and conclusions about the larger implications of the reading, and offering critiques of the author’s argument. You may also choose to summarize or refocus the classroom discussion. Informed participation not only demands you speak, but that you actively listen to the issues that your classmates raise. Uninformed speaking coupled with an inability to listen to your classmates will be graded just as harshly as if you choose not to speak at all. Dr. Kerr reserves the right to randomly ask follow-up and probing questions to determine if students have done the reading.  If you have problems speaking or listening in class, meet with Dr. Kerr as soon as possible to strategize about how you can effectively participate in discussions.

Course Assignments: (15%)

Throughout the course of the semester there will be several assignments that students will be required to complete. Detailed descriptions of the assignments will be given to you over the course of the semester. 

The Shenandoah Valley Oral History Project: (30%)

In the Shenandoah Valley Oral History Project students will plan, individually conduct and transcribe two hours of interviews with at least two people from marginalized communities. Prior to conducting the interviews, students will prepare and submit an interview guide for approval. An average typist should expect to spend approximately eight hours transcribing a one-hour interview.  The transcriptions will each range between fifteen and twenty pages in length. Students will also maintain and turn in a background journal with their final materials.  Transcripts will be delivered to the interviewees, and when possible students should obtain release forms.  Assuming the interviews are of acceptable quality, the recordings, transcripts, background journals, interview guides, field notes, photographs and release forms will be deposited in the Special Collections Department of Carrier Library. The transcripts will be uploaded to the course Blackboard discussion page so other students can use the materials for their final projects. When release forms allow, recordings will be posted on the public history server.  More detailed guidelines will be presented throughout the semester.

Class Presentation: (10%)

Students will prepare a powerpoint presentation for the class based on their interviews. The presentations should include original recordings, photographs, an in-depth overview of the content of the interviews, and a discussion of the overall dynamics of the relationships established between the narrators and the interviewers.

Final Project: (20%)

Students will have a choice between different types of final projects. Each of the projects can draw upon the transcripts, photographs and actual recordings produced by any of the course’s participants or from the SVOHP website. (1) Students write a ten to twelve page final paper. These papers can either address the substance of the interviews or address methodological issues related to the interview process. The papers must draw upon themes that are discussed in the course readings. (2) Students prepare a 29 minute broadcast quality radio documentary that could potentially be aired on WXJM-FM or WMRA-FM.  The documentary must include clips from the recorded interviews of at least four individuals, interpretive narration, and appropriate background sounds and/or music unless permission is granted otherwise.  (3) Submit a proposal and get approval for an alternative final project – such as a play, website, audio walking tour, exhibit design, etc.

Grading Policy

(A) means genuinely outstanding, mastery of the subject, near flawless exposition, and incisive interpretation. (B) means well above average achievements in mastery of the subject, exposition, and interpretation throughout the course. (C) means comprehension of the basic concepts, competent exposition, and interpretation. The grade of C indicates that the student has learned the subject at an appropriate university level. (D) means unsatisfactory but still barely passing. (F) means failure. These grades are earned by the student and reflect student performance.