HISTORICAL WRITING WORKSHOP

This historical writing workshop is addressed to the students of the Bachelor’s Degree Programme in HISTORY [FT5], particularly 2nd and 3rd-year students. The workshop aims at strengthening the skills for writing the third-year thesis. It is among the Internships activities and it is based on participatory and interactive teaching. for this reason, attendance is strongly recommended and the ideal number of participants is limited to 20-25 people. Registration is compulsory and can be made by writing to vciciliot@unive.it to book the spot at any time during the year. Registration on Moodle alone is not valid.
The workshop doesn’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 based on 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 requesting the professor, who will decide on a case-by-case basis.

The goals of the Workshop are:
- to gain confidence with the structure of the argumentative text;
- to become familiar with the different historical writing practices and styles;
- to finalize notes and bibliography;
- to set up a research paper and the third-year thesis

Knowledge of Italian language.

This workshop will investigate the basic elements of historical writing and its different forms and articulations, focusing particularly on argumentative/academic essays. It will offer in-class and at-home exercises aimed at analyzing primary and secondary sources, understanding the nature of the argumentative essay, and designing and writing a final research paper with table of contents, footnotes, bibliography, and abstract. How to write formal e-mails and a resume will be also explored. Two classes will be conducted by BAUM library staff.

Required reading: Paola Italia, Writing at the University. Practical manual with exercises and text anthology, Le Monnier Università, Florence 2014 (second updated edition).
Optional reading: Claudio Giunta, How Not to Write: Tips and Examples to Follow, Pitfalls and Nonsense to Avoid When Writing in Italian, Turin, Utet 2017.

The workshop doesn’t have a final exam but the achievement of a qualification (‘idoneità’).
Attendance, participation, and results will be constantly monitored. The achievement of the 3 credits is conditioned to the completion of all tasks and assignments. Each student will be given the opportunity to discuss with the teacher the workshop outcomes and the revision of the assigned works.
Active participation throughout the workshop is required.

Short introductory lessons in seminar form; writing practical activities; class discussions. All the classes will be interactive.

1. All the participants must register to the workshop through the Moodle electronic platform, but only after they have received a confirmation from the teacher (as mentioned above, write to vciciliot@unive.it beforehand);
2. They must include the Workshop in the study plan (please contact the teacher if this is not possible);
3. At any rate, they must register for the exam at the end of the course so that the qualification can be registered.

written and oral