History 200: Hands-on-History

HISTORY 200:
Hands-on-History
CAS/Fall 2004
McEwen 215

Dr. Henry Kamerling
Office: 201 Watkins
Hours: M/W/F 10-12
Phone: 704-337-2435
Email: kamerlih@queens.edu

Image: Johnson's 1861 Map of North and South Carolina

Course Overview:

Joke:
"Did you know that over half the high school history teachers have the same first name?"
"Really? What is it?"
"Coach."

Why is this joke funny? Partly I guess because there is some sad degree of truth to it. Many high school students are taught history by people not trained as historians. This often means that history has been presented to them as a dull and thankless task in memorizing a long list names and dates and facts. Whatever latent or budding curiosity about the past students once possessed is crushed to pieces by this facts-oriented approach to studying history. Perhaps the most frustrating aspect of this reality is that not one person trained as a professional historian would present the past to their students in such a manner.

In Requiem for a Nun William Faulkner observed that, "the past is never dead. It's not even past." What did Faulkner mean by this? In one sense he meant that we are surrounded by the past. It is in our buildings and roads, our system of government, the style of dress we choose, our sexual mores. The past is literally everywhere. In another sense Faulkner meant that we are our past, that not only are we shaped by the choices we made in the past but that our identity is rooted, inextricably, in how we understand the past.

The goal of this course is to introduce students to a usable past by exploring the history that surrounds us. We will do this by moving from studying topics in the classroom to an exploration of the rich and varied history of Charlotte and the Carolina Piedmont.  For instance, did you know that a series of important Revolutionary War battles were fought in and around the Charlotte area? Did you know that one of the most important and violent labor strikes in American history took place right here in the 1930s or that the sit-in strategy of the modern civil rights movement was born in nearby Greensboro? By taking students to several local and regional sites of historical importance over the course of the semester, this class will introduce students to the serious subject of history and how historians practice their craft.

Special Note on Class Topics & Format:
Starting with the freshmen class entering Queens in fall 2003, History 200 will be a required course for history majors. The course is only one credit and may be repeated once, with the permission of the instructor. Class meets once a week for one hour. The course will be organized around a series of off-campus excursions to local and regional sites of historical interest, visits to museums, or trips to local lecture series, when appropriate and convenient. We will spend our time in class studying a site we are planning to visit, followed by (naturally) an off campus excursion. Typically, we will journey to four distinct sites over the course of the semester. These trips will take place at dates and times outside the regularly scheduled class period. As a trade-off for your participation in events outside of class, a certain number of the normal class sessions will be canceled, as indicated on the syllabus. I will try and cancel one class for every off-site event.

Because this course is organized around off-campus trips, you will need to make a commitment to travel dates outside the normal class meeting time. Please mark down and keep the following dates and times open:

        ● 1) SATURDAY Sept. 18: Native American Festival at the Charlotte Museum of the New South
            ▪ Leave Queens at 10am (return roughly by 2pm)
        ● 2) THURSDAY Oct. 7 @ 7:30pm in Sykes 24: History from Film - Mel Gibson's The Patriot
            ▪ Film showing starting at 8pm in Sykes Auditorium
        ● 3) SATURDAY Oct. 9: Travel to Kings Mountain National Battlefield Site
            ▪ Leave Queens at 9am (return roughly by 2pm)
        ● 4) FRIDAY Oct. 29: Travel to Carowinds Amusement Park for Scarowinds
            ▪ Leave time tba
        ● 5) SATURDAY Dec. 4: Uptown Walking Tour of Charlotte and/or Visit to the Museum of the New South
            ▪ Leave time 10pm (return roughly by 2pm)

Pass No Credit Format & Assessment:
This class cannot be taken for a grade. However, you must get at least a D to earn one credit for passing this course. Your will earn your grade in this course by conducting two short research projects, completing homework assignments (answering study questions over the readings), and by taking quizzes over the materials covered in this course. The quizzes will be simple and are designed just to check and make sure you have done the reading. You may use a hand written 3x5 note card for quizzes. Students who show up early to class may start their quizzes early. Quiz time will not last longer than 5 past the hour. On occasion I will place extra credit questions on the quiz. These questions will be drawn from the "This Day in History" web link page on the History Department web site.

You must also be able to participate in all the off-campus events scheduled in order to pass this course. Check your semester schedule carefully and make sure you are able to attend these events. If you know that you will be unable to attend an event at the start of the semester, please let me know immediately and I will try and work out a plan B. If this is not possible, you may have to drop the course and try your luck again next semester.

Attendance Policy:
Attendance counts as 10% of your final grade and affects other grades you will receive in this course like class participation. There are no "free" absences. Excused absences are possible but must be cleared with me, in advance if possible. If you show up late to class you may be marked as absent and it is your responsibility to see that I make the correct changes. This can only be done on the day you show up late and not after. Two "late" marks will count as one absence. Each un-excused absence will be factored in as a third off your final attendance grade. In addition, each absence will also take one point off your final grade for the course. Finally, absences, excused or un-excused, negatively impact your class participation grade.

Assignments and Evaluation:
Students taking this course will be evaluated on the basis of the following assignments and requirements:

NOTE: You must also be able to participate in all the off-campus events scheduled in order to pass this course.

Required Readings:
There are no required readings for this course. Course readings will either be handed out to you in class or placed on reserve in the library. Reading that is on reserve is indicated with an ® on the syllabus.

Syllabus & Schedule:
For the course schedule of readings and assignments, click Here

Assignment	Percent	Date Due	Assignment	Percent	Date Due
Attendance	10%	*	Primary Source Research Project	20%	*
Quizzes	20%	*	Web Research Project	20%	*
Class Participation	10%	*	Homework	20%	*