Week 02: Policies and Topics

Please prepare before class! Time estimate: 60-90 mins to prepare, 45mins meeting

We will talk about the approach I have to grading and why it matters to you, and me, and you should come prepared to jump into the conversation (voice or chat) at the time, or even start the conversation before class via our Discord #hst259-classroom channel. If you want other policies from the syllabus revised, please note in Hypothes.is or email me to put them on the agenda.

Reading: Alfie Kohn, “The Case against Grades.” https://www.alfiekohn.org/article/case-grades/ 

• Read this text in advance of class. You may print out a copy to annotate, or read it on the screen and take notes, or use Hypothes.is and annotate in our group hst259

Guiding questions: (to help you think about the content of the text)

• What is extrinsic motivation? Intrinsic?
• What does Kohn mean with “… grading for learning is, to paraphrase a 1960’s-era slogan, rather like bombing for peace.”
• Do grades measure what is important according to him? According to you?

Questions for us:

• What has to happen for you to give a course (this course!) your highest effort?
• How would a teacher know you gave your highest effort in a task, even if your work is not yet of the highest quality (because you’re still learning, and making mistakes, messing up, and “shitty first drafts” are part of the learning process)?

Time estimate: 60 mins

Our student-authored textbook isn’t just the only one! Looking through more traditional textbooks can help you get more ideas for your own project, so can trawling through journals (with articles written by professional historians) to get a sense of what the trends in research are.

1. If you have the optional textbook A History Of Korea: From Antiquity To The Present by Michael Seth: look through the Table of Contents, and led curiosity guide you: which chapters or sub-sections do you want to read? Read them, but set a timer for 15 mins so you can go through to the next items on the list!
2. If you don’t have the textbook, try to get access to the library copy (three users at a time, so you may have to wait your turn), or the (much less detailed) following text: Peterson, Mark, and Phillip Margulies. A Brief History of Korea. Brief History. New York, NY: Facts On File, 2010. (ebook Trexler).
   • I know there are other textbooks but some of them are pretty old and our understanding of Korean history has changed a lot in the past 30-40 years!
3. Everybody also does some “journal trawling”: Go to the Library Resources (<– click on that link) and you’ll see three journals for Korean Studies listed, which we have in the library. (There is other good stuff on that page, btw). Here’s how to “trawl” through a journal:
   • Pick a journal, click to go to the library catalog, and then click on the big red “access journal button”
   • After entering your Onelogin credentials, you are on the homepage of the journal. Scroll down a bit to see the list of available journals, in reverse chronological order.
   • Start at the top, with the most recent issue available (2021 most likely).
   • Look at the titles of the articles, and the authors. Does anything tickle your curiosity? Click through to have a look at the abstract or the introduction. If you find it interesting, download the article or save the reference in a place where you can retrieve it.
     • TIP: If the title of the article is in italics, it’s likely a book review. That can be interesting, and it will definitely be a useful shortcut later. These book reviews tend to be placed at the back of the journal.
   • Go through a few years, when your time is up (60 mins scheduled for the total of today’s task), check if you notice any patterns in the articles you found interesting, intriguing, strange
     • Maybe there is a change in the topics researchers like to address?
     • Maybe you have a specific interest and you’re now able to notice?
     • Maybe you’re just more confused than ever about what Korea and its history is?
4. Take note of these observations because you’ll use these in your first 5-15 report, and post your top-three ideas or impressions on the Discord channel #hst259-classroom, it will help me structure Friday’s session. Thanks!
   • You can share your reading notes with me if you want feedback, or want some help parsing through the intricacies of a professional academic journal.

Time estimate: 15 mins prep, 45mins for the meeting

There are some gaps in our student textbook, and after your exploration of the other textbook and journals, you may be game for filling some of them. Here are some of the ones I am thinking about:

• Goryeo period (918-1392)
• Buddhism in Korea (can be smaller chunks for specific time periods)
• Text-based sources for the history of earlier Korea, e.g. Historical Records of the Three Kingdoms (Samguk sagi), Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms (Samguk yusa).
• First contacts with the West
• More in-depth treatment of the colonial period and Japanese occupation
• Dictatorship in south korea (Syngman Rhee, Park Chunghee, Chun Doohwan)
• North Korea: almost everything

Based on what you learned this week from your wide-ranging excursion through Korean history, would any of these topics be of interest to you as a chapter to work on during the semester? Take a few minutes to jot ideas down before class, so you can add some into the discussion. Now’s a great time to start steering your ship in a general direction and do some cursory exploration of areas that seem intriguing and remarkable.

Submit a blog post that is a 5-15 report. Your “Reading Journal” component is a bit different this week:

• List the materials and the route you used to investigate the topics that you were drawn to (Thursday’s task). We likely will use this later in the semester when we have a session with Kelly Cannon.
• Explain what you learned from trawling through the journals. How is this different from previously working with course materials or sources? Or are you a seasoned historian and did you rejoice at this task? Share it all!

Remember to also add any tasks that are on your to-do list (not those scheduled for the whole class, but for you individually, e.g. sorting out a blog-related issue), and any open questions or issues you want to flag up for follow-up with me. These weekly reports are extremely useful for me to get an insight in how you’re working, what you make of the course and the materials, and how I can best support your learning and adjust the course.

TIP: for anything you’re not comfortable putting in a blog where others can read it, you can just drop me a message on discord OR post anonymously on the Padlet!