EUB151 Nations and Nationalism in Modern Europe

Unit Outline: Semester 2 2024, Kelvin Grove, Internal

Overview

This unit provides you with an understanding of matters pertinent to the evolution of nationalism in Europe in the modern era. This will include the influence of social movements, cultural and economic issues (1640-1990). Nationalism, nationhood and national identity have become subjects of heated debate in the post-cold war world. But what is nationalism? What constitutes a nation and how does nationality become one of the primary bases for the construction of individual and collective identities? This unit offers you the ability to critically evaluate the work of professional historians. You will explore how available evidence and methodologies employed influence cultural and political factors and shape the messages and values that historians advocate through their writing. These practices promote understandings of how historians work, the rules that govern their methods, the reliability of historical knowledge and the value of history socially and culturally.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:

1. Analyse, synthesise and evaluate information from numerous primary and secondary sources.
2. Demonstrate effective communication skills to analyse, generate and transmit knowledge, skills and ideas to others.
3. Display a high standard of essay writing skill to critically evaluate primary and secondary documents.
4. Show how history and historians shape the present.
5. Construct an evidence-based argument in written form.

Content

Learning Approaches

In this unit you will learn through engaging in the following:

• Lecturer- provided information
• Tutorial-based debate
• Student-centred discussion through carefully chosen media
• Activities designed to promote understanding, the exercise of higher order thinking and the formulation of original hypotheses and stances.
•  Activities will involve you demonstrating an understanding of content; gaining an appreciation of the variety of approaches to interpretations of the past; showing how history and historians shape the present and the future; identifying and interpreting secondary and primary sources; undertaking research according to methodological and ethical conventions of the discipline including being aware of the consequences of plagarism; analysing historical evidence and representations of the past; constructing evidence-based arguments and identifying and reflecting critically on knowledge and skills.

Feedback on Learning and Assessment

Formative feedback will be provided in this unit through:

• Unit feedback includes marked criteria as well as comments.
• Formative feedback will be provided for Work in Progress discussions in tutorials
• The lecturer evaluates the presentations and essays using set criteria that offers students a full understanding of areas that need improvement as well as areas of competency or excellence.
• The presentations (Assessment 1) will also provide an opportunity for students to identify areas for improvement in historical critique necessary for successfully passing the research essay (Assessment 2)

Assessment

Overview

The General Assessment for this unit is both formative and summative. The summative assessment consists of two principal items:

1. A research portfolio that consists of a number of activities designed to critically responds to a research question. You will help facilitate a discussion with your peers, share resources and discuss ideas through both synchronous and asynchronous activities. Your discussion will provide context, include a hypothesis and outline an argument.

2. Written Research Task: 2500 words based on your own research. You will independently research a topic investigated in this unit. The task requires analysis, synthesis and evaluation of research material in order to support an independent hypothesis and essay. In writing your consistent, sustained argument, you will identify your biases.

Unit Grading Scheme

7- point scale

Assessment Tasks

Assessment: Research portfolio

Response to historical evidence
An in-class presentation that critically responds to an allocated secondary resource. Utilising critical analysis skills, you will help facilitate a discussion with your peers.

Each response will provide context, include a hypothesis and outline an argument. 4-5 students will work individually to present a perspective on the secondary source. Each student will facilitate a discussion with their peers.

Understanding of content, gaining an appreciation of the variety of approaches to interpretations of the past, showing how history and historians shape the present and the future, identifying and interpreting secondary and primary sources, analyzing historical evidence and representations of the past, constructing evidence-based arguments and identifying and reflecting critically on knowledge and skills.

Assessment: Written research task

Write 2500 words based on a set topic. You will independently research a specific topic from this unit. This task requires analysis, synthesis and evaluation of research material in order to demonstrate your critical evaluation and research skills

This task requires you to undertake independent research in support of a topic analysis

In this task you are expected to demonstrate your capacity to:

1. comprehend terms, issues and concepts;
2. analyse historical sources and evidence to show understanding;
3. synthesise information from historical sources and evidence to form a historical argument;
4. evaluate historical interpretations to make judgements;
5. create a response that communicates meaning to suit purpose; and
6. reflect on your sources and your research skills.

The intensive nature of your research, your ability to gain an understanding of a circumstance, the persuasiveness and authority of your writing, and your ability to develop an evidence-based argument will be evaluated in the assessment criteria.

This is an assignment for the purposes of an extension.

Academic Integrity

Students are expected to engage in learning and assessment at QUT with honesty, transparency and fairness. Maintaining academic integrity means upholding these principles and demonstrating valuable professional capabilities based on ethical foundations.

Failure to maintain academic integrity can take many forms. It includes cheating in examinations, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, and submitting an assessment item completed by another person (e.g. contract cheating). It can also include providing your assessment to another entity, such as to a person or website.

You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.

Further details of QUT’s approach to academic integrity are outlined in the Academic integrity policy and the Student Code of Conduct. Breaching QUT’s Academic integrity policy is regarded as student misconduct and can lead to the imposition of penalties ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.

Resources

Resource Materials

Prescribed text(s)

Imhoof, David. So, About Modern Europe...A Conversational History from the Enlightenment to the Present Day. Bloomsbury Publishing, 2021.

Risk Assessment Statement

There are no out-of-the-ordinary risks associated with general participation in this unit. Workplace Health and Safety protocols associated with computer use will apply.