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Touchstone 4: Thinking Like a Historian
ASSIGNMENT: In this course, you have been introduced to the skills of historical thinking by examining events in modern U.S. history with attention to the Five C’s: change over time, context, causality, contingency, and complexity. Recall each of these historical thinking skills from the Analyzing Primary Sources lesson.
Change Over Time: History happens over a period of time. During any given period of time, people, events, and ideas can change.
Context: Think about historical events in terms of their greater context. Nothing occurs in a vacuum, isolated from the social, cultural, economic, or political setting of the day.
Causality: All historical events have multiple causes and effects. Before the first shot of World War II was fired, a long history of political, economic, and social unrest set the stage.
Contingency: Everything is related. Historians think about the ways in which historical trends and events are related to other trends and events, making connections between them.
Complexity: We live in a complex world. Historians understand this and create historical narratives that reflect a world of different meanings and perspectives.
Historians apply these critical thinking skills when creating accounts of the past. Now, it’s your turn to apply these skills of historical thinking by analyzing topics or events using the same framework.
To complete this assignment, you will use the template provided below. You will return the completed template as your Touchstone submission. A sample assignment is also provided.
Thinking Like a Historian Template
Thinking Like a Historian Sample
In order to foster learning and growth, all work you submit must be newly written specifically for this course. Any plagiarized or recycled work will result in a Plagiarism Detected alert. Review Touchstones: Academic Integrity Guidelines for more about plagiarism and the Plagiarism Detected alert. For guidance on the use of generative AI technology, review Ethical Standards and Appropriate Use of AI.
A. Directions
Part 1: Change Over Time
Step 1: Download the Template
Download the Thinking Like a Historian Template.
Step 2: Choose Topic and Time Period
From the chart below, choose a combination of one topic and one time period. Within that topic, you will identify and describe something that changed and something that stayed the same throughout that period.
EXAMPLE You might choose to write about U.S. foreign policy between 1970-2016, or immigration between 1877-1920, or the U.S. economy between 1890-1945. You may select any combination of topic and time period that interests you.
Choose One Topic Choose One Time Period
Western Expansion
U.S. Foreign Policy
National Politics
Race Relations
U.S. Society and Culture
Technology and Innovation
Immigration
The U.S. Economy 1877-1920
1890-1945
1940-1990
1970-2016
Once you’ve selected a topic and time period, prepare to respond to the prompts in Part 1 of the template.
HINT
Revisit the US History II tutorials. Navigate to the most relevant course units and explore the tutorials related to your selected topic.
Step 3: Record Your Responses
Record your responses in Part 1 of the template. Responses to each prompt should be roughly 5-6 sentences.
Part 2: Context, Causality, and Contingency
Step 1: Choose a Primary Source
Review the U.S. History II Touchstone Primary Source List and choose one for your assignment.
You must select from the provided list of primary sources. No other sources are allowed.
You do NOT need to choose a source from the same time period as Part 1 or follow those time periods in your response to Part 2.
Submissions that discuss a primary source that is not on the provided list will be returned ungraded.
Study the source and prepare to respond to the prompts in Part 2 of the template.
Step 2: Record Your Responses
Record your responses in Part 2 of the template. Responses to each prompt should be roughly 5-6 sentences.
Part 3: Complexity and Reflection
Step 1: Reflect
Answer the reflection questions in Part 3 of the template.
Step 2: Review the Rubric
Review the rubric (Section B) to ensure you understand how your Touchstone will be evaluated, and revise as needed.
Step 3: Review the Requirements
Review the requirements (Section C) and the checklist below to ensure your Touchstone is complete and ready to submit. Do not submit your Touchstone until it meets these guidelines.
❒ Check that you recorded your responses in the Thinking Like a Historian template.
❒ Check that you completed all parts of the template.
❒ Check that your source for Part 2 is on the provided list. Other sources will not be accepted.
❒ Check that you have included your name and date.
❒ Check that your work is proofread for proper grammar, punctuation, spelling, and capitalization.