Category Archives: Teaching
Apparently the Liberal Arts Aren’t Irrelevant
I have been noticing an increasing drumbeat in recent months of arguments that despite all “evidence” to the contrary, the liberal arts are neither dead nor irrelevant. These arguments tend to emerge out of one of two motivations, either passionate defense … Continue reading
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Capitalism is an Empty Signifier
Back in January, I posted about a project that my Cultural History of Capitalism seminar was undertaking this semester. Students in the class had to go out and interview three people about how they understood both the meaning of capitalism … Continue reading
Yik Yak is the Id of the University
It has been a tumultuous 24 hours at UMW, since the Virginia State Police rolled in last night and arrested some protesters who had been occupying the administration building for the past three weeks in an attempt to get the … Continue reading
Exploring Modern Popular Meanings of Capitalism
This semester I am teaching a new course that I’m very excited about, which I’ve titled Cultural History of Capitalism, which will mostly focus on the United States. It’s a senior-level undergraduate seminar, in which we will study some economic … Continue reading
Discussing My Cliometric Odyssey
Next Wednesday, April 16th, I will be talking with the Department of History and American Studies about an ongoing cliometrical research experiment I have been undertaking this academic year. With a research team of two outstanding senior history majors, Leah … Continue reading
Posted in Digital Life, Historian in the World, Teaching
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Crowdsoucing Project: Bad Historical Websites
On Wednesday, I will be leading a discussion in my undergraduate History Practicum seminar about learning to distinguish between reliable and unreliable sources on the wide-open Internet. The students have been assigned to bring in an example of a good … Continue reading
Making a Collaborative Reading Notes Wiki
This semester I am experimenting with using MediaWiki as a platform for the students in my History of Manhood in the US course to build a collaborative set of reading notes. After being less than completely satisfied with my Twitter … Continue reading
Teaching is About Relationships
This week’s readings were all about using technology to open up teaching and learning and to take advantage of the “abundance” of teaching materials, expertise, and networks. These pieces all strike me as fine, as far as they go, but … Continue reading
Posted in Digital Life, Teaching
Tagged fi, instructional technology, twitter, umwdomains
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Congrats to the Mack Pack
I had a great bunch of thesis students this year. I learned halfway through the semester that a bunch of them had been carpooling to the Library of Congress and had dubbed themselves “the Mack Pack.” (Also, apparently they dubbed … Continue reading
