The Public History Year

All Public History students take 3 one-term mandatory courses, 3 one-term optional courses, and the Public History Internship. The required courses are:

History 9800: Public History: Theory, History and Practice
History 9801: Group Project
History 9808: Digital History
History 9802: Internship

For optional courses, students may take the Public History courses History 9832: Interactive Exhibit Design; History 9807: Introduction to Museology; History 9834: History of Things: An Intro to Material Culture; History 9809: Social Memory; or History 9806: Understanding Archives, or any course from the regular History graduate offerings. Some courses, such as History 9202: Canada and the First World War, offer students the opportunity to complete Public History related projects.

Students may also choose to take a course outside of the History department with special permission. In the past, students have taken courses in Visual Arts, Geography, Journalism, Education, and Anthropology, in courses which teach topics and skills that are often part of Public History. For example, in 2010, some students enrolled in the Visual Arts course Mapping Medievalism at the Canadian Frontier which included the curation of an exhibition and writing for the accompanying publication. In 2011 and 2012, several students took GIS courses in Geography.

Courses outside of the History department which may be available to Public History students change every year. For those available for the upcoming academic year, please contact the Director of Public History at mhamilt3@uwo.ca.

A Typical Year (2011-12)
Fall	Winter	Spring/Summer
His9800: Public History: Theory, History & Practice (required)	His9801: Public History Group Project (required)	His9802: Public History Internship (required)
His9808: Digital History (required)	His9832: Interactive Exhibit Design
His9806: Understanding Archives	His9837: Museology
French 9500
Professional Development Series (required)

His9800A: Public History: Theory, History & Practice

This core course introduces the field, its history, and the theoretical and practical concerns underlying it. Required for Public History students; not open to other graduate students.

His9801B: Public History Group Project

Continues the process of teaching Public History students the actual methods and skills of public history today. The course culminates in a multi-stage Public History group project in collaboration with a community institution. Required for Public History students; not open to other graduate students.

His9806: Understanding Archives: Management of Primary Sources in the Digital Age

This course surveys the nature and role of archival studies as a field of information science, blending theory and hands-on practice. Optional for Public History students; open to other graduate students with instructor's permission

His9807: Introduction to Museology

This course explores such matters as accessioning, conservation, exhibition, interpretation and repatriation in contemporary museums. It often includes visits to local museums and projects with community partners. Optional for Public History students; open to other graduate students with instructor's permission.

His9808A: Digital History

This course covers both the presentation of history in digital form and the use of computational techniques to work with digital resources. Required for Public History students; open to other graduate students with instructor's permission.

His9809: Social Memory

This research course is an introduction to the phenomenon of social memory in various modern societies. It will address such matters as the commemoration of historical events and the meanings conferred on them, conflicts over different versions of history, the construction of collective identities around historical events, and the influence of historical events on modern nationalisms. In each case, there will be an attempt to understand the continuing impact of the past on the present. The seminar readings will be divided into themes, with each week’s readings examining a different case study of the theme.

His9832B: Interactive Exhibit Design

In this studio course, students learn how to design and build interactive exhibits through a series of hands-on projects that teach the basics of interaction design, physical computing and fabrication. Preference is given to Public History students; open to other graduate students with instructor's permission.

His9834: History of Things: Introduction to Material Culture (Not Offered 2012-13)

This course introduces students to a variety of theoretical and methodological approaches in material culture through weekly seminar discussions. As well, students will apply using objects as a major category of evidence through workshops and assignments. Issues of material form, function, embodiment, consumption, object agency, and more will be discussed through seminar readings towards illuminating the complex and powerful roles that “things” of all sorts play in our lives. Various aspects of museology and artifact collection management will be also addressed, such as the accessioning, exhibition and interpretation of objects. Optional for Public History students; open to all to graduate students.

His9875: Indigenous Historical Research and Methodologies

This course examines Indigenous constructions of history as well as issues and tensions between Indigenous people and the contemporary discipline of history. Themes will include Indigenous historical methodologies (including but not limited to oral histories), re-examining the colonial historic record, and contemporary Tribal Nation history projects. The course will examine histories of specific Indigenous Nations as well as over-arching themes that span across the Indigenous world. Emphasis will be placed on Indigenous ways of viewing and researching histories as well as the status of Native histories in a North American context.

Anth9110: Principles in Applied Archaeology

An examination of the practice of applied archaeology in North America. The course aim is to introduce the student to the legislative regime and fundamental principles that govern the form of archaeology carried out by consultant or commercial archaeologists hired by third parties to undertake archaeological investigations on property proposed for land use development or resource extraction.

FNS4902: Land Claims and Primary Historical Research

Students will learn how to conduct historical research into land claims and the historical context of land claims in Canada. Students will immediately learn to navigate their way through government archives detailing the history of Indian Affairs in Canada. The course will also explore topics such as oral history as a primary research method, the comprehensive and specific claims process, claims and the courts and the role of industry and the duty to consult First Nations. The land claim process across Canada will be examined. As well the development of the contemporary claims process as it now exists will be considered.