2016 Faculty in Residence

Amy Whipple, Ph.D.

HIST 140 Britain: Sherlock to Britpop

Under the old core curriculum, Dr. Whipple regularly taught the two-semester European history survey, which covered all of Europe from the ancient period to the present day. The sheer amount of material always felt pedagogically limiting. It was difficult to promote much deep, active learning in the classroom while moving through content so quickly.

When she designed her new "Historical Perspectives" course for the revised core curriculum, she reduced its focus to a single country (Britain) and a much shorter time span (1870-2010). This significant shift in subject has allowed her to design the course with more student-centered, active learning activities throughout the semester. As the syllabus makes clear, she has instituted assignments (quizzes and informal writing assignments) that ensure students are responsible for thoughtful engagement with readings and videos prior to coming to class. The students then have a necessary framework in which to discuss the material as a large group or to work on specific tasks in small groups.