10814 - Teaching of History (1)

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course students will be able to identify the basics of teaching and educational research according to the main methods and educational planning technologies, and adopting a general approach to participatory and skills-based educational planning, including disciplines relevant to recruitment fields. They will be able to apply the main teaching-learning methods in the secondary school, including active learning and transmedia, in a perspective of educational experimentation geared to analysis of techniques and learning technologies in the scholastic field. They will be familiar with digital technologies, media education and e-learning; they will have learnt the dynamics of education and social media; they will be able to evaluate skills and scholastic achievement (evaluation of the product, the process, and the system).

Course contents

The course of "Didactics of History" aims to provide the necessary educational and disciplinary knowledge. Not only the acquisition of advanced knowledge about history, but the successful educational implementation of teaching content. Hence: in-depth theoretical and methodological knowledge of teaching methods; preparation of suitable teaching tools and contexts; evaluation of learning outcomes and, more generally, of the efficiency of the teaching process.

Main phases of the course:

• History and civic culture. History as a critical tool for understanding the present.
• The cultural transmission of historical knowledge. Periodizations, interpretations, ideas and passions.
• Biographies, paths and networks. The teaching of history through the interweaving of biographies and places.
• History workshops: some practical proposals. The transfer of content into effective educational actions.
• Didactics in the archives and in the libraries. From the document to the historical narration.
  
• Historical communication and public history. New ideas for digital teaching in history.

In more detail, the 15 sessions that make up the course will address the following themes:

1. Foundations of History Education: What is history? – On the usefulness of history – The aims of History Education – The role of the history teacher; What are historical sources? – Primary and secondary sources.
2. The temporal dimension: Historical time between continuity and change – Chronology and periodization; History and geography: spaces, territories, places – The global dimension of History Teaching – The historical nature of landscapes – Local history as an entry point to historical understanding.
3. Toward an active pedagogy: Guided research paths and hands-on history teaching – Cooperative learning – Designing history modules: from present to past and back again; Cultural heritage and history education – The concept of “cultural heritage” – The challenge of heritage protection between total war and postwar recovery – Intangible heritage and popular cultures.
4. Methodology and historiography: History and globalization: the changing interpretive frameworks between the 20th and 21st centuries – Overcoming eurocentrism and the “spatial turn” in World History.
5. Pathways and networks between the local and the global: The biographical method and its contribution to History Education.
6. Teaching history through sources: The World War I between local and global perspectives, using photographic sources.
7. Propaganda in totalitarian regimes: The case of Italian Fascism – Film history and social history during the Fascist era – From Fascism to the Republic: Resistance through literature and cinema.
8. Using literary sources in history education: Peasants and serfs in 19th-century Russia in Ivan S. Turgenev’s Sketches from a Hunter’s Album (1847 - 1852); Italian migration between the 19th and 20th centuries through Mario Rigoni Stern’s Vecchia America (1960).
9. Historiographical debate as a teaching tool: A case study: State antisemitism in Italy (1938 - 1945).
10. Teaching with a World History perspective: A workshop-based approach to contemporary China.
11. Sites of Memory from the 20th century to the present: Visiting a 20th-century historical site: Monte Sole; New memory sites: Lampedusa.
12. Reframing national history: Italian colonialism: phases, legacies, and memory from the Liberal era to the present.
13. Urban heritage and History Education: From Antiquity to the 20th century.
14. History and citizenship: Democracy, constitutions, and forms of political representation.
15. Teaching historical writing: Before writing: learning to read, take notes, and organize source material – Writing an argumentative essay: structure and features – How to cite sources, use footnotes, and compile a bibliography.

Readings/Bibliography

Readings for students who will attend the lectures

Students must study 3 books (according to the following program) and 3 articles from the section "Classroom teaching and public history experiences":

 

Textbook (obligatory):

• Walter Panciera, Andrea Savio, Manuale di didattica della Storia. Formazione e aggiornamento per i docenti di scuola secondaria, Firenze-Milano, Le Monnier Università-Mondadori Education, 2022

 

Methodology and historiography (1 book at choice of the student):

• Laura Di Fiore, Marco Meriggi, World History. Le nuove rotte della storia, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2019 (2011)
• Agostino Giovagnoli, Storia e globalizzazione, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2021 (2003)
• Charles H. Parker, Relazioni globali nell’età moderna, 1400-1800, Bologna, il Mulino, 2012
• Tommaso di Carpegna Falconieri, Amedeo Feniello, Christian Grasso (a cura di), Fonti medievali. Un'antologia, Roma, Carocci, 2017
  
• Giusto Traina (a cura di), Le fonti della storia antica, Bologna, il Mulino, 2023
• Carlo De Maria, Una famiglia anarchica. La vita dei Berneri tra affetti, impegno ed esilio nell'Europa del Novecento, Roma, Viella, 2019
• Carlo De Maria, Andrea Costa e l'Italia liberale. Società, politica e istituzioni tra dimensione locale ed europea, Bologna, Bologna University Press, 2021 (PDF open access)
  
• Sam Wineburg, Why Learn History (When It's Already on Your Phone), Chicago-London, University of Chicago Press, 2018

 

Historical communication, didactics and public history (1 book at choice of the student):

• Carlo Arrighi, Civiltà sotto assedio. Il volto della barbarie dall'antichità a oggi, Bologna, Bologna University Press, 2022 (PDF open access)
• Eloisa Betti, Carlo De Maria (a cura di), Biografie, percorsi e networks nell'Età contemporanea. Un approccio transnazionale tra ricerca, didattica e Public History, Roma, Bradypus, 2018 (PDF open access)
• Lucia Boschetti, Silvia Ditrani, Raffaele Guazzone, Insegnare storia con le nuove tecnologie, Roma, Carocci, 2022
• Giovanni Carbone, L’Africa. Gli Stati, la politica, i conflitti, Bologna, il Mulino, 2021
• Alberto Cavaglion, La Resistenza spiegata a mia figlia, Milano, Feltrinelli, 2015 (prima edizione: Napoli, L'ancora del Mediterraneo, 2005)
  
• Andrew Flint, Stuart Jack, Approaches to learning and teaching History. A toolkit for international teachers, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2018
  
• Mariuccia Salvati (a cura di), Europa. Luoghi di memoria, Roma, Treccani, 2020
  
• Carlo Tosco, I beni culturali. Storia, tutela e valorizzazione, Bologna, il Mulino, 2014
• Vittorio Vidotto, Emilio Gentile, Simona Colarizi, Giovanni De Luna, Storia d’Italia in 100 foto, immagini a cura di M. Fugenzi, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2019 (2017)
• Gianni Volpi, I film da vedere a vent'anni. Una filmografia selettiva, con le schede per temi e generi di Livio Marchese, Roma, Edizioni dell'Asino, 2014

 

Classroom teaching and public history experiences

3 articles at choice of the student from the following two journals:

"Novecento.org": http://www.novecento.org/category/didattica-in-classe/

"Clionet": http://rivista.clionet.it/archivio

3 articles in all, from either or both journals. As far as “Clionet” is concerned, a selection of recommended articles to choose from is available on Virtuale at this link.

 

 

Readings for non-attending students

Non-attending students must study 4 books (the textbook, plus 3 books at their choice, according to the following guidelines) and 3 articles from the section "Classroom teaching and public history experiences":

 

Textbook (obligatory):

• Walter Panciera, Andrea Savio, Manuale di didattica della Storia. Formazione e aggiornamento per i docenti di scuola secondaria, Firenze-Milano, Le Monnier Università-Mondadori Education, 2022
  

 

Methodology and historiography (2 books at choice of the student):

• Laura Di Fiore, Marco Meriggi, World History. Le nuove rotte della storia, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2019 (2011)
• Agostino Giovagnoli, Storia e globalizzazione, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2021 (2003)
• Charles H. Parker, Relazioni globali nell’età moderna, 1400-1800, Bologna, il Mulino, 2012
• Tommaso di Carpegna Falconieri, Amedeo Feniello, Christian Grasso (a cura di), Fonti medievali. Un'antologia, Roma, Carocci, 2017
  
• Giusto Traina (a cura di), Le fonti della storia antica, Bologna, il Mulino, 2023
• Carlo De Maria, Una famiglia anarchica. La vita dei Berneri tra affetti, impegno ed esilio nell'Europa del Novecento, Roma, Viella, 2019
• Carlo De Maria, Andrea Costa e l'Italia liberale. Società, politica e istituzioni tra dimensione locale ed europea, Bologna, Bologna University Press, 2021 (PDF open access)
  
• Sam Wineburg, Why Learn History (When It's Already on Your Phone), Chicago-London, University of Chicago Press, 2018

 

Historical communication, didactics and public history (1 book at choice of the student):

• Carlo Arrighi, Civiltà sotto assedio. Il volto della barbarie dall'antichità a oggi, Bologna, Bologna University Press, 2022 (PDF open access)
• Eloisa Betti, Carlo De Maria (a cura di), Biografie, percorsi e networks nell'Età contemporanea. Un approccio transnazionale tra ricerca, didattica e Public History, Roma, Bradypus, 2018 (PDF open access)
• Lucia Boschetti, Silvia Ditrani, Raffaele Guazzone, Insegnare storia con le nuove tecnologie, Roma, Carocci, 2022
• Giovanni Carbone, L’Africa. Gli Stati, la politica, i conflitti, Bologna, il Mulino, 2021
• Alberto Cavaglion, La Resistenza spiegata a mia figlia, Milano, Feltrinelli, 2015 (prima edizione: Napoli, L'ancora del Mediterraneo, 2005)
  
• Andrew Flint, Stuart Jack, Approaches to learning and teaching History. A toolkit for international teachers, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 2018
  
• Mariuccia Salvati (a cura di), Europa. Luoghi di memoria, Roma, Treccani, 2020
  
• Carlo Tosco, I beni culturali. Storia, tutela e valorizzazione, Bologna, il Mulino, 2014
• Vittorio Vidotto, Emilio Gentile, Simona Colarizi, Giovanni De Luna, Storia d’Italia in 100 foto, immagini a cura di M. Fugenzi, Roma-Bari, Laterza, 2019 (2017)
• Gianni Volpi, I film da vedere a vent'anni. Una filmografia selettiva, con le schede per temi e generi di Livio Marchese, Roma, Edizioni dell'Asino, 2014

 

Classroom teaching and public history experiences

3 articles at choice of the student from the following two journals:

"Novecento.org": http://www.novecento.org/category/didattica-in-classe/

"Clionet": http://rivista.clionet.it/archivio

3 articles in all, from either or both journals. As far as “Clionet” is concerned, a selection of recommended articles to choose from is available on Virtuale at this link.

 

Teaching methods

Frontal and multimedia lessons.

 

Assessment methods

Students who attend at least 75% of the lessons are considered to be attending.

Assessment methods: written test, plus oral exam.

The written test is on the textbook and consists of five open questions with a value of six points each. The written test is considered passed with a total score of at least 18/30. Only in this case students are admitted to the oral exam, which is related to the entire programme and takes place about a week later (info).

For both tests, the evaluation criteria are as follows: relevance of the answers; ability to argue; adequacy of the disciplinary language used; ability to apply the acquired knowledges to a critical interpretation of contemporaneity.

In particular, answers that will be given with a proper language and with exactitude are going to be evaluated with the top marks (29-30L).

Answers that will be given without precision or property are going to be evaluated with intermediate marks (25-28).

Vagueness in the content of the answer, one or two questions left unanswered will result in marks not higher than sufficient (18-24). Substantial errors and unanswered questions will result in a grade of Insufficient.

Drafting a well-written short paper (book critical review) on one of the selected books during the lessons (only for attending students), according to the instructions given by the professor, allows to skip the written exam and access to the oral exam directly.

 

Exam sessions are scheduled for the following months of the academic year:

- May, for all students, written and oral mode

- June, for all students, written and oral mode

- July, for all students, written and oral mode

- September, for students in debt of exam, written and oral mode

- November, for students in debt of exam, written and oral mode

- January, for students in debt of exam, written and oral mode

- March, for students in debt of exam, written and oral mode 

 

Teaching tools

To support easier access to course materials, the professor uploads on Virtuale platform, before each class, the slides that will be used and, after the class, the video recording of the class made with Panopto.

During the lessons, we will explore online resources related to the methodologies of teaching history, historical communication and public history.

Students with learning disorders and/or temporary or permanent disabilities: please, contact the office responsible (https://site.unibo.it/studenti-con-disabilita-e-dsa/en/for-students) as soon as possible so that they can propose acceptable adjustments. The request for adaptation must be submitted in advance (15 days before the exam date) to the lecturer, who will assess the appropriateness of the adjustments, taking into account the teaching objectives.

Office hours

See the website of Carlo De Maria