PUBLIC HISTORY WORKSHOP

The workshop is part of the Master’s Degree Programme in ‘History from the Middle Ages to the Present’, and is connected to the Venice Centre for Digital and Public Humanities (VeDPH) in the Department of Humanities.
The objectives of the course are: the acquisition of Public History’s tools and methodologies, the understanding of some of the issues related to the production and consumption of history in public, with the public, and for the public. At the core of the course is the execution of a project that combines historical research and public engagement. The achievement of these objectives will enable the student to develop the skills to navigate the world of Public History and understand the basic techniques of the dissemination of historical research to a general public.
The Workshops, together with formative and orientation Internships, concur to provide the students with helpful knowledge to access the job market. They are based on a participatory and interactive teaching, aiming at strengthening the students' transferable skills: for this reason attendance is strongly recommended. For the same reason the ideal number of participants is limited to no more than 20-25 people.
The Workshops don’t have a final exam but the achievement of a qualification ('idoneità', corresponding to 3 credits) which will be granted at the end of the course on the basis of the activity carried out by the students. The students who have attended the course but haven't obtained the qualification can, under exceptional circumstances, obtain it in subsequent exam sessions by making a request to the professor, who will decide on a case by case basis.

1. Knowledge and understanding:
• Knowledge of the evolution of the Public History from the twentieth century to the present.
• Knowledge of the relevant theoretical and intellectual debate.
• Knowledge of the main techniques and methodologies of historical research carried out with the public and in public.
• Knowledge of the main techniques and methodologies of historical dissemination carried out with the public and in public.
2. Ability to apply knowledge and understanding:
• Ability to apply the practice of Public History to a specific case of popular dissemination of history.
• Ability to solve the problems connected to the dissemination of historical studies in non-academic contexts.
3. Ability to rielaborate autonomously what has been learned:
• Ability to critically analyse a historical source.
• Ability to develop critical thinking skills with reference to the issue of the public use of history and the alteration of historical memory in non-scholarly contexts.
4. Communication skills:
• Ability to interact with the peers and the professor and communicate the outcomes of the student's work.

Basic knowledge of medieval, early modern, or modern history.
No specific computer science knowledge is required.

For its own nature, the workshop revolves around the execution of a project to be carried on throughout the semester. The student will work towards the creation of a Wikipedia article of historical topic, which should fall within his/her competence and will be chosen together with the professor. In this respect, the work will be divided in two different phases, strictly connected one another:
1. Historical research on the secondary sources available on the topic, including their critical assessment.
2. Creation of a Wikipedia article.
The use of electronic tools and a digital online platform make it a form of Digital Public History.

Apart from the main activity, the workshop will include some other practical activities which will allow the students to explore the presence of history in the present and to experience some forms of dissemination of history.

The contents of the course will include a series of more general topics related to the theory and practice of Public History, such as:
• Public sources
• Public memory and historical sites
• Museums, archives and heritage centres
• Community history
• Oral history
• Public History writing
• History in the media and the web
• History and fiction
• Re-enactments and commemorations
• History games
• Public engagement
• Applied history
• Shared authority and crowdsourcing

• Mirco Carrattieri, 'Per una Public History italiana', Italia Contemporanea, 289 (April 2019), pp. 106-121.
• Lori Byrd Phillips - Dominic McDevitt-Parks, 'Historians in Wikipedia: Building an Open, Collaborative History', Perspectives on History, 1 December 2012. https://www.historians.org/perspectives-article/historians-in-wikipedia-building-an-open-collaborative-history-december-2012/

Additional readings:
• Thomas Cauvin, ‘New Field, Old Practices: Promises and Challenges of Public History', magazén - International Journal for Digital and Public Humanities, 2 (2021), pp. 13-44. https://edizionicafoscari.unive.it/it/edizioni4/riviste/magazen/2021/1/new-field-old-practices-promises-and-challenges-of/
• Roberto Bianchi - Gilda Zazzara, 'La storia formattata. Wikipedia tra creazione, uso e consumo', Passato e Presente, C (2017), pp. 129-155

As for every other workshop, for the Public History Workshop there is no a final oral exam.
Assessment consists of a qualification ('idoneità') and will be based on the following components:
1) Completion of the workshop project on the Wikipedia article.
2) Completion of the other activities, with respect of fixed deadlines.
2) Class presentation.
3) Participation to class discussions.

Part-time students must contact the professor BEFORE the beginning of the course and then they must complete the activities and keep the deadlines.

Seminar-syle classes with practical activities and interaction between professor and students.
Execution of the workshop project.
When possible, also a guest lecture and/or a field-trip will be included.

Given the nature of the workshop, both attendance and active participation to class discussions are very important. If you have to miss a class please contact the professor beforehand to explain and ask how to make up.
Teaching materials will be made available through the Moodle e-learning platform.

Italian

Accessibility, Disability and Inclusion.
Accommodation and support services for students with disabilities and students with specific learning impairments:
Ca’ Foscari abides by Italian Law (Law 17/1999; Law 170/2010) regarding support services and accommodation available to students with disabilities. This includes students with mobility, visual, hearing and other disabilities (Law 17/1999), and specific learning impairments (Law 170/2010). If you have a disability or impairment that requires accommodations (i.e., alternate testing, readers, note takers or interpreters) please contact the Disability and Accessibility Offices in Student Services: disabilita@unive.it.

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