27276 - Laboratory (1) (Med.)

Academic Year 2022/2023

  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures
  • Campus: Bologna
  • Corso: First cycle degree programme (L) in History (cod. 0962)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the workshop students will be able to plan a research path, collecting, selecting and organizing data and documentary information thanks to the specific tools acquired during the course unit; they will be able to analyse documentary, material and iconographic sources in a critical light and from a diachronic perspective. They will able to write a short text without assistance. They will have learned to be methodologically rigorous and precise. Attuned to group work, they will have learned judgment on a professional, human and ethical plane.

Course contents

The workshop consists of a first part which is common to all students and is focused on the examination of bibliographic tools of general interest, that will also be presented in the digital version. These tools will be useful for the preparation of a degree thesis in historical disciplines (total of 12 hours).

The first part is held twice, students can sign up to one of the two options, according to their preference and available places:

Option 1: Oct. 10, 11, 17, 18, 24, 25, 2022 1-3 p.m. or
Option 2: February 13, 14, 20, 21, 27, 28, 2023 1 p.m.-3 p.m.

The second part of the Workshop consists of specific lessons concerning the four chronological areas characterising the degree course in History (18 hours). Students must register to each shift.

IMPORTANT: it is necessary to sign up for one of the two general parts and at the same time for the specific Workshop of chronological area (in our case Medieval History). You can sign upby sending an email to Prof. Maria Pia Casalena (mariapia.casalena@unibo.it), starting from Sept. 1 until Sept. 15 pv, until the 25 places available for each lab are fully booked.

The Workshop is primarily aimed at the production of a dissertation and, more generally, scientific papers.

A general introduction will therefore be devoted to some specific issues:

1. The choice of theme and supervisor

2. The selection and reading of the bibliography (some topics already covered in the section on bibliographical resources will be quickly recalled)

3. Finding archival sources and analysing documentation (which will be the core of the Workshop)

4. How to cite primary and secondary sources

5. The writing of the thesis and its internal organisation

Core activities will focus on direct knowledge of the main reference sources to provide the basic tools and skills needed to write the thesis. In particular, we will focus on:

  • Analysis of the different types of sources and their exegesis, through reference editions and with some excursus in the direction of direct reading of manuscripts.
  • Exercises based on the documentation conserved in the Archivio di Stato di Bologna. The main ways of accessing its vast documentary heritage will also be examined.
  • Critical reading, individually or in groups, of sources concerning specific case studies.

Readings/Bibliography

TESTI

We recommend reading two texts of your choice from the following:

  • P. Delogu, Introduzione alla storia medievale, Bologna, il Mulino, 2003
  • M. Bloch, Apologia della storia o mestiere di storico, Torino, Einaudi, 2009
  • F. Senatore, Medioevo istruzioni per l’uso, Milano, Bruno Mondadori, 2008

SOURCE COLLECTIONS

  • S. Gasparri, Voci dai secoli oscuri. Un percorso nelle fonti dell’alto medioevo, Roma, Carocci, 2017
  • Fonti medievali. Un'antologia, ed. by T. Di Carpegna Falconieri, A. Feniello, C. Grasso, Roma, Carocci, 2017
  • Teaching materials provided during the course

Teaching methods

During the lessons, the students will actively participate in reading and analysing the proposed texts. For the last part of the workshop, they will have the option of dividing into small groups (2-3 people) in which, under the guidance of the lecturer, they will carry out research using the knowledge they have acquired. Alternatively, those who have already established a thesis with a lecturer can organise the presentation of the sources used individually.

If there is the possibility, a didactic visit to the Archivio di Stato di Bologna will be organised.

IN ORDER TO OBTAIN THE FINAL QUALIFICATION, ATTENDANCE OF 25 HOURS OUT OF A TOTAL OF 30 IS MANDATORY.

Assessment methods

- Those who have decided to carry out the research as a group will have to produce, together, a paper of 10-15 pages (20-30,000 characters), accompanied by a Power Point presentation to be shown to the lecturer and fellow students, in which the research activity carried out must be summarised.

- Those who have opted for the individual presentation of a source used within an already established dissertation will have to produce a 5-7 page (10-14,000 characters) paper on the source itself. This too must be accompanied by a Power Point presentation to be shown to the lecturer and fellow students.

- Papers must be handed in to the lecturer at least three days before the date chosen for the exam. The presentation, independent of the paper, may take place during the last lesson of the workshop or during the exam. Its duration will be 10 minutes, in the case of both individual and group work.

- From the evaluation of the paper and its presentation, the lecturer in the exam will check

  • the knowledge of the topics addressed during the lessons;
  • the mastery of research tools and methods specific to the medieval field.

Possession of this knowledge and ability and, in general, active participation in the activities proposed during the workshop will lead to an evaluation of eligibility.

Teaching tools

Reproductions or editions of the sources analysed in class will be made available.

Office hours

See the website of Antonella Campanini