Assignment: Create a thoughtful and well-presented research project that is, or is the equivalent of, a c. 8 pages (c. 2000 words) research paper that reflects your own historical interpretation of a topic related to this course and makes good use of properly cited historical evidence (whether taken from sources in the course or from sources outside the course) and completed and submitted by Friday, December 18th.

BE SURE TO GIVE YOURSELF ENOUGH TIME TO PRODUCE A PROJECT THAT REFLECTS YOUR BEST EFFORT!

_______________________

Expectations: Your research project should be clear, thought-out, and well-presented and reflect a topic you have put some thought and interest into, and where necessary contain strong quality writing, definitely proofread!, using appropriately cited historical evidence to support your interpretation. All projects, whether written or not, should represent the equivalent work/time/effort of a c. 8 page essay.

You have many options to consider in terms of how you fulfill the Research Project Assignment (including as an essay, a web-based media project–this could be audio, visual, or both, a piece of art, or other form of creative assignment). Be sure to pick a topic and format that represents an interest of yours!

Examples of Projects

• Essay: An c. 8 page (c. 2000 words) essay.
  • You could, but do not have to!, include images, websites, or some other form of online media to make the essay more interactive.
  • Be sure to cite your sources and/or include a bibliography!

• Historical Fiction/Poetry/Etc.: Use real historical information, sources, analysis, and evaluation to present something new that constitutes a creative critical historical interpretation.
  • Be sure to cite your sources and/or include a bibliography!
  • NOTE: THIS MUST INCLUDE A 2-4 PAGES (500-1000 WORDS) HISTORICAL ANALYSIS EXPLAINING YOUR PROJECT IN DETAIL TO YOUR AUDIENCE!

• A lecture, slide presentation, video, song, picture, etc.: You could create an audio project, a visual project, or both!
  • Be sure to cite your sources and/or include a bibliography!
  • NOTE: THIS MUST INCLUDE A 2-4 PAGES (500-1000 WORDS) HISTORICAL ANALYSIS EXPLAINING YOUR PROJECT IN DETAIL TO YOUR AUDIENCE!

• Do It Yourself (DIY): Come up with something else (it would probably be a good idea to check with me about the format ahead of time)
  • Make sure it’s the equivalent of the work/time/effort of a c. 8 page essay!
  • Be sure to cite your sources and/or include a bibliography!
  • NOTE: THIS MUST INCLUDE A 2-4 PAGES (500-1000 WORDS) HISTORICAL ANALYSIS EXPLAINING YOUR PROJECT IN DETAIL TO YOUR AUDIENCE!

Remember: If you use outside historical sources for evidence be sure that they are “good sources.” They should meet the following 3 criteria:

1) The creators are associated with higher education and non-profit centers or some other form of “quality control.”

2) You can identify who created the source and can check their reliability.

3) Information is credited and sourced so you can find where it is coming from and you can potentially double-check the information yourself.

_______________________

CITATION NOTES:

• I would recommend you use a formal citation-style as practice. You can see examples for Chicago-style citation (the preferred format in history) by clicking here (Links to an external site.).
• If you prefer, you can continue to use informal citation that can appear in parentheses following your discussion of your source and look like this: (Name of author/creator, “Name of source,” and if it has a page number include that here or if it is from a website use <url here>, finish with the date you accessed the page or the date of publication)
  • Example: “It’s a good idea to start on a research project at least a month ahead of its due date.” (Blake Johnson, “Research Project Assignment,” HIST-3B-43873-F20<https://peralta.instructure.com/courses/35356/assignments/343655> [put date accessed here])

_______________________

Tips: If you are having trouble deciding on a topic you can contact the instructor for advice or you can (but don’t have to!) do your project on one or more of the following topics related to Modern World History:

• The impact(s) of colonialism, imperialism, and/or globalization at any/all points between 1500 and the present.
• The historical development(s) of any aspect of culture, society, science (including medicine), technology, etc.
• Identity 1 or more historical “turning points” or “transitions” that did, or did not, change the course of world history and explore why it happened, what it did, and/or how it could have been different.

• Some particular person or event you are interested in from any period between 1500 to the present.
• Compare the experiences of different parts of the world during some or all of the the period we cover in this class. Examples: Compare India with China or the United States or Japan or compare the “developed” and “developing” world. Or…

*NOTE: There are no right or wrong arguments; I just want you to research and produce a project that you are interested in creating and, hopefully, will be proud of your resulting project.

_______________________

Feedback: Your feedback, which will become part of your overall evaluation in this course, will be based on 5 criteria of emphasis that should be familiar from the Weekly Assignments–

1. TOPIC: You have chosen an appropriate topic for the course, world history from c. 1500-Present, that can enhance your and your audience’s understanding of world history.

2. RESEARCH: You have engaged in sufficient, and hopefully imaginative research (online and/or in books or something else), that reflects your interest in your topic, has given you excellent material on which to base your project (evidence), and you have at least informally cited your research in your project.

3. ARGUMENT, ANALYSIS, AND EVALUATION: You have a clear, precise, and accurate presentation, analysis, and evaluation of the evidence/information you present that explains your interpretation/use of the information–your historical argument is clear and well-developed and well-supported.

PRESENTATION: Your project is a clear, imaginative, organized, and engaging project on your chosen topic and you present the material well and in a way that enhances understanding and appreciation of your topic.

COMMUNICATION: You communicated your project to your audience clearly; this includes your writing (whether a full essay or the 2-4 pages explanation of your project or something else) being clear and concise yet detailed and your project, overall, provides excellent communication of your information, interpretation, and motivation and intent in the project.

POINTS: CANVAS LOVES USING POINTS EVEN IF I DON’T WANT TO.

PLEASE NOTE:

• THE RUBRIC WILL NOT FACTOR INTO YOUR FINAL GRADE! IT’S JUST A WAY TO GET A SENSE OF AREAS OF STRENGTH AND AREAS FOR IMPROVEMENT.
• THE ASSIGNMENT POINT (1 POINT) IS BASED ON WHETHER YOU HAVE SUBMITTED THE ASSIGNMENT AND I PROVIDED YOU FEEDBACK–IT IS OTHERWISE MEANINGLESS!

Rubric

Research Project Assignment Rubric

Research Project Assignment Rubric

Criteria	Ratings
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeTOPICYour topic is directly appropriate to this class and can enhance your and your audience’s understanding of historical material from the class.	Proficient Your topic is well chosen and directly relates to this class—it fits within the time period and geography of the class. It can enhance your and your audience’s understanding of course material. Developing Your topic is appropriate to this class—it fits within the time period and geography of the class. It might enhance your and your audience’s understanding of course material. Needs Improvement Your topic is broadly appropriate to this portion of the class—it generally fits within at least part of the time period and geography of the class. It likely does not enhance your or your audience’s understanding of course material. Incomplete Your topic is not directly appropriate to this portion of the class—it does not quite fit within the time period and geography of the class. It does not enhance your or your audience’s understanding of course material.
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeRESEARCHYou have engaged in significant and imaginative research (online and/or in books) that reflects your interest in your topic and has given you excellent material on which to base your project (evidence). Your research is at least informally cited.	Proficient You have engaged in significant and imaginative research (online and/or in books) that reflects your interest in your topic and has given you excellent material on which to base your project: You’ve found excellent material on which to base your presentation by being thoughtful in your research. You have at least informally cited your sources. Developing You have engaged in good and imaginative research (online and/or in books) that reflects your interest in your topic and has given you very good material on which to base your project: Your research is not just Wikipedia or random “googled” websites—you’ve given your research some effort. You have at least informally cited your sources. Needs Improvement You have engaged in some basic research (online and/or in books) that reflects at least some interest in your topic and has given you decent material on which to base your project: Your research is mostly Wikipedia or random “googled” websites—the equivalent. You have at least informally cited your sources. Incomplete You have engaged in little basic research (online and/or in books) that does not reflect least much interest in your topic and has given you weak material on which to base your project: Your research is entirely Wikipedia or random “googled” websites and demonstrates a lack of care. You have likely not cited your sources.
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeARGUMENT, INFORMATION, AND EVALUATIONYou have a clear and precise argument and accurate analysis and evaluation of the evidence/information you present that explains your interpretation/use of the information–your historical argument	Proficient You have an excellent argument with relevant and accurate information you have assembled from your research to serve as evidence. You’ve analyzed and synthesized the information to incorporate it into your presentation to make a strong historical argument. Developing You have a good general argument with relevant and accurate information you have assembled from your research to serve as evidence. You’ve mostly analyzed and synthesized the information to incorporate it into your historical argument which might need a little more historical detail or explanation to make a stronger argument. Needs Improvement You have some good points as part of your historical argument and mostly relevant/accurate information that you have assembled in your research to serve as evidence. You’ve done a little analysis and synthesis to incorporate the information into your historical argument but your argument is likely needing more evidence and explanation or it might have some questionable information or interpretations. Incomplete You have little relevant/accurate information that you’ve brought together so your historical argument is very general or unclear. You’ve done little analysis and synthesis to incorporate the information into your argument so it is either not very reflective of your own interpretation or remains too unclear to be able to serve as an effective argument.
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomePRESENTATIONYour project is an imaginative, organized, and engaging project on your chosen topic and you present the material well and in a way that enhances understanding and appreciation of your topic.	Proficient Your presentation format is an imaginative, organized, and engaging presentation on your chosen topic. You present the material well and in a way that enhances understanding and appreciation of your topic. Developing Your presentation is a solid, organized, and informative presentation of your topic. You present the material well but perhaps not in in a way that enhances understanding and appreciation of your topic because it might need more development or explanation. Needs Improvement Your presentation is mostly solid but might seem short or not be as organized or informative as it could be. You might present the material in a way that could undermine someone’s understanding of your topic. Incomplete Your presentation needed more work as it is not as long, organized, nor informative as it should be. You present the material in a way that undermines understanding of your topic.
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeCOMMUNICATIONYour writing (whether an essay or the 2-4 pages/500-1000 words explanation of your project) is clear, concise yet detailed, and overall provides an excellent communication of your information, interpretation, and motivation and intent in the project.	Proficient Your historical analysis/explanation of your project is well-written, concise yet detailed, and provides an excellent overview/analysis of your motivation and intent in the project in an informative manner. Developing Your historical analysis/explanation of your project is well-written, concise yet detailed, and provides a good overview/analysis of your project from which the reader can learn more information. You might have needed to be a little more specific or develop your explanations a little more to more fully communicate your project. Needs Improvement Your historical analysis/explanation of your project could be more concise and detailed and provide a better overview/analysis of your project from which the reader can learn more information. Incomplete Your historical analysis/explanation of your project is missing or so poorly done that it tells the reader little about your presentation or your research process.

PreviousNext