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HIST512 Cities of the Ancient and Modern World

Updated: 03 October 2012
Credit Points 6
Offering
Responsible Campus Teaching Period Mode of Study
Armidale Trimester 3 Off Campus
Intensive School(s) None
Supervised Exam There is no UNE Supervised Examination.
Pre-requisites Candidature in a postgraduate award
Co-requisites None
Restrictions None
Notes None
Combined Units None
Coordinator(s) Matthew Dillon (mdillon@une.edu.au)
Unit Description

This unit will study the urban history of important cities of the ancient and modern (including medieval) world. Students will choose two (2) major historical cities and study one or more key aspects of those cities - their social fabric, political structure, history, archaeology, economy, and art and architecture. The chosen topic(s) within a city will be related to ideas of the importance of the urban centre as the crucible of ancient and modern civilisation, and concepts of urbanisation and the city as a human institution. Students will study the role of the city in general as the pivotal focus of most civilisations, and what cities have contributed to human history. European, Asian, Australian, American, and other cities can be examined.
Materials Textbook information will be displayed approximately 8 weeks prior to the commencement of the teaching period. Please note that textbook requirements may vary from one teaching period to the next.
Disclaimer Unit information may be subject to change prior to commencement of the teaching period.
Assessment Assessment information will be published prior to commencement of the teaching period.
Learning Outcomes (LO) Upon completion of this unit, students will be able to:
  1. critically discuss the concepts of urban history as appropriate to the context of their chosen area of study;
  2. critically discuss historical issues and problems that specifically relate to the context of selected topic areas;
  3. select and synthesise ideas from primary and other sources;
  4. present and argument addressing effective communication strategies to present a properly documented argument addressing an historical problem or issue; and
  5. discuss the relevance of historical problems and issues to contemporary societies.

Graduate Attributes (GA)
Attribute Taught Assessed Practised
1 Knowledge of a Discipline
Students will deepen their knowledge to think critically and improve their academic skills through the assessment tasks. 		True True True
2 Communication Skills
Students will be assessed on the style of writing, clarity of writing, expression and development of ideas, and referencing. Students will practise their communication sklls thorugh completing the essays. 		True True
3 Global Perspectives
The study of history is geared towards the development of global perspectives and cross-cultural literacy. The content of each module within the unit will address international events and developments helping students to think about global issues and perspectives, as well as the universality of the central course themes. 		True True True
4 Information Literacy
Students are encouraged to develop research skills in collecting and evaluating data, including the skills to assess the utility of information, identify the most useful sources of information and critically examine those sources. 		True True True
5 Life-Long Learning
Students will be taught how to engage in independent research and to structure their own learning programs. The unit will emphasise the porogressive development of knowledge, and the diverse ways in which it is moulded by continuing research, scholarly conversation and often vigorous debate. As such, the unit does not focus on a finite body of knowledge. Rather it encourages open enquiry, ongoing debate and a desire to seek out more and question further. These are independent learning skills which can be applied to other learning situations throughout life. 		True True
6 Problem Solving
A central part of this unit requires students to research and solve the problems posed by their assessment tasks. They will be required to identify critical elements in the problem before formulating a method of solving it and proceeding to collect, collate and analyse the relevant information. They will also encounter questions and other problem solving activities throughout the unit - in the study guide and in online discussion boards - that are not in themselves directly assessable, but will prepare students for their assessment tasks. 		True True True
7 Social Responsibility
Students will be taught about their professional responsibilites as a researcher to provide balanced and accurate research. In addition, students will be taught that they have a social responsibility to question and challenge some 'facts'. This will be taught and assessed through their responses to the essays and discussions in online postings. 		True True True
8 Team Work
History is essentially a social endeavour and cooperation between interested and committed scholars is integral to work in the field. Students will be encouraged to work in teams. In particular this will occur through online discussions where students will be encouraged to share their resources and issues they encounter in the course of their study. 		True
   

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