TYPE OF PROPOSAL: session
TITLE: MA Programmes for Humanities Computing and Digital Media
KEYWORDS: teaching; digital media; institutional support
AUTHOR: (session organizer) Susan Hockey
AFFILIATION: School of Library, Archive and Information Studies,
University College London
E-MAIL: s.hockey@ucl.ac.uk
CONTACT ADDRESS: School of Library, Archive and Information Studies,
UCL, Gower Street,London WC1E 6BT
FAX NUMBER: 020 7383 0557
PHONE NUMBER: 020 7679 2477
Overview
At recent ACHALLC conferences and other venues, there has been much
discussion about possible MA programmes in humanities computing,
digital and new media. At the 1997 conference at Queen’s University,
Ontario, the ALLC sponsored session discussed humanities computing
in the graduate curriculum (Hockey et al 1997). Four speakers
addressed a range of questions, but mostly in terms of what
might be desired for the future. The EU thematic network
project on Advanced Computing in the Humanities (ACO*Hum)
surveyed "the landscape of humanities computing education in
Europe" but concentrating on undergraduate studies and those
most closely tied to traditional humanities subjects (de Smedt
et al 1999: 16-24). It did not address "information, communication,
media and multimedia" considering them to be "social sciences
rather than humanities" (p16). In autumn 1999, the University
of Virginia organized a series of invitational seminars on "Is
humanities computing an academic discipline?" in the context of
planning for an MA. Reflecting changes in the discipline, speakers
addressed a broader range of topics than the ACO*Hum project,
including multimedia and digital media.
At ALLCACH2000 in Glasgow, the ACH session discussed humanities
computing and the job market, and the topic of employability
of students came up in several other sessions. The rapid growth
of job opportunities in Internet publishing and electronic media
has brought an increasing demand for MA programmes in an area
where humanities computing can make contribution, but there
is still little practical experience of what these programmes should
teach and how.
In this session we will present two MA programmes, one of which
have been offered for several years and one which is funded and
about to begin. Presenters will describe their programmes addressing
the following topics:
· What are the aims and objectives of the programme?
· What were the important issues and challenges in setting up
the programme within the institution?
· How does the programme fit into the overall structure of the
institution?
· What kind of initial investment is needed to start such a program?
· How is the academic content of the programme structured? What
are core modules/courses and what options are available? What
are the key issues if some teaching is done in other departments
or faculties?
· How is the balance between theoretical and practical work
determined and what, if any, institutional issues affect this?
· What are the main criteria for assessing student work?
· Does the programme involve a work placement and if so, what
factors influence choice of placements? How are placements monitored?
· How is project/dissertation/report work organized and assessed?
· What are the academic backgrounds of students accepted for the
programme? Are there any particular requirements?
· How many students are on the programme, full-time and part-time?
· What are the employment prospects for students who complete the
programme? What kinds of jobs do they take and where?
· What technical facilities are needed for the programme and how
are these supported?
· What curriculum changes and developments are being considered
and why?
Throughout there will be an emphasis on evaluation and assessment of
how far the programmes have been able to meet their aims and objectives
and what factors have influenced the directions which the programmes
are taking.
References
"ACO*HUM: Advanced Computing in the Humanities". <http://www.uib.no/acohum>
Susan Hockey, Harold Short, Espen Ore, Willard McCarty and Geoffrey Rockwell.
"ALLC Special Session: Humanities Computing in the Graduate Curriculum".
ACH-ALLC’97, Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario. 3 June 1997.
<http://www.qucis.queensu.ca/achallc97/papers/allcsession.html>
Konrad de Smedt, Hazel Gardiner, Espen Ore, Tito Orlandi, Harold Short,
Jacques Souilliot and William Vaughan (eds). Computing in Humanities
Education: A European Perspective. Bergen: University of Bergen, 1999.
“Is humanities computing an academic discipline?” University of
Virginia seminar. Autumn 1999.
<http://jefferson.village.virginia.edu/hcs/>.
TITLE: The MA in Electronic Communication and Publishing at UCL
KEYWORDS: teaching; digital media
AUTHOR: Iain Brown
AFFILIATION: School of Library, Archive and Information Studies,
University College London
E-MAIL: iain.brown@ucl.ac.uk
The postgraduate MA in Electronic Communication and Publishing,
which started in 1997, investigates aspects of multimedia and
digital communication and examines how convergent digital media
combine existing publishing practices with exciting new media
forms. Based in the School of Library, Archive and Information
Studies at UCL, the MA is a holistic degree, furnishing students
with a theoretical understanding of the issues and implications
of disseminating information through electronic publications
such as CD-ROMs, Intranets and Web pages, and teaching them
the practical skills for managing information communication.
The initiative for the creation of the MA came from the then Dean
of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities who with others perceived
the potential of combining humanities graduates' liberal arts and
creative backgrounds with cutting-edge computing skills, to enable
them to enter industry bringing a solid grounding in electronic
communication and liberal arts.
Initial funding for the creation of the lectureship in Electronic
Communication and Publishing and the equipping of a special
multimedia cluster was obtained from Xerox, The Document
Company. This enabled an initial intake of 13 students in September
1997.
Since this time, the programme has grown steadily and in less than
three years student numbers have doubled, to 28. Applications for
entry in September 2001 are already being received, and it is expected
the total number will number in excess of 100. Students on the
programme come from a variety of backgrounds and locations, all
of which contributes to the uniqueness of this MA degree.
Applications received not only from the UK, but also from across
the globe, including America, Japan, China, Taiwan, Burma, Malaysia,
Hong Kong, Singapore, India, Pakistan, Israel, Jordan, Nigeria, Ghana,
South Africa, Norway, Sweden, Luxemburg, Germany, Austria, Italy,
Greece, Turkey and Ireland. The students' background in humanities,
too, are equally diverse, including: Ancient and Modern History,
Business Studies, Economics, Education, Egyptology, English and
European Literature, Film and IT, Hispanic Studies, History of Art,
Journalism / Media Studies, Library studies, Linguistics, Performing
Arts, Philosophy, Political Sciences and Sociology.
Aims of the degree
The MA in Electronic Communication and Publishing is designed to
educate students to be capable of performing the role of editor,
project manager or information specialist. As a postgraduate degree,
it is aimed at students who have developed a significant body of
knowledge in a specialist area through undergraduate study and/or
who have a specialist knowledge of a specific area within the
traditional publishing industry.
In specifically taking humanities graduates and skilling them with
the ability to create, manipulate and manage electronic information,
the MA is producing people capable of overseeing the construction of
electronic systems for distributing and archiving vast quantities
of information. Graduates from the science disciplines have a role
to play in this construction process, but humanities graduates can
also bring to bear lateral and creative thinking in identifying and
addressing problems and issues facing humanities computing today.
Course structure
The MA in Electronic Communication and Publishing is organised to
provide a broad introduction upon which to build a platform for
greater specialisation. This enables students to identify preferred
speciality with a view to their eventual career intentions. The emphasis
throughout the MA is on a two-layer approach: a theoretical seam
reinforced by practical instruction.
The theoretical teaching looks at a range of approaches covering
all aspects of electronic commerce and culture, from cultural
theory to information science, linguistics to project management.
The MA is designed to introduce the students to all the relevant
areas of digital media culture, allowing them to specialise in a
particular area of research as the course progresses.
The practical instruction covers the relevant software and hardware
needed to create and manage electronic projects, including:
* SGML, HTML, XML and XHTML authoring for the Internet
* Designing for screen and the printed page
* Incorporating interactivity and dynamic content generation
* Database management
* Image acquisition, manipulation and management
* On-line digital video and audio development and integration
The MA is offered as either a twelve-month full-time degree or a
twenty-four month part-time degree. All students take the following courses:
* EF, Foundation Course (a general introduction to the nature of
information and electronic communication)
* E1, Technical Aspects (where students gain the practical and
critical skills needed for successful project design and production)
* E2, Management Aspects (which extends the E1 course to the
management of larger projects and user access to information and
services)
* E3, Legal Aspects (comprising a series of lectures covering the
legal world and electronic communication and publishing)
* E4, Optional Course (from which students select one option, in
publishing, education, computing in the humanities, XML,
JavaScript or managing electronic records)
Furthermore, students have the facility to undertake an additional course,
the Practical Attachment. The purpose of this course is to introduce
students to the current working situation in industries related to
electronic communication and publishing.
The Practical Attachment is for a period of four weeks at a relevant
institution (publishing house, new media company, library, school,
archive, newspaper or magazine office, etc.). The MA has very good
links with industry, but students are not limited to these connections.
Students use the Practical Attachment to evaluate what areas of further
research and/or employment they may wish to pursue after graduation,
and thus undertake a placement at a company or institution which may
be a future employer.
Assessment
Students on the MA in Electronic Communication and Publishing are
assessed continuously. Each course within the MA requires two pieces
of coursework to be submitted: a 4,000-word essay (chosen from a range
of set questions); and an electronic project (normally a fully
working Web project) incorporating a 2,000-word commentary. This
commentary identifies the object of the project, any underlying
concepts, the legal issues affecting the content of the site, the
audience, the construction, main features and interactivity of the
site, and finally, the possible future directions and expansion of
the site.
To complete the MA, students are required to submit a Research
Project. This substantial piece of work takes at least three months
to complete and involves the writing of a dissertation of 10,000
words (or the electronic equivalent), on a topic of the student's own
choice. Alternatively, students have the facility to create a
substantial practical project together with a shorter written
commentary, instead of writing a dissertation.
Resources
The MA is dependent upon a specially-equipped, up-to-date,
dedicated suite of multimedia computers (both PC and Macintosh).
Students have access to industry-standard software and
hardware such as scanners, digital cameras, digital audio
and video suites and Web-conferencing cameras. Everything is
provided for creating paper-based, Internet and CD-ROM projects,
with a ratio of one computer to every three students.
In addition, the cluster is backed up by two servers, one running
the cluster network, and the other acting as a Web server, enabling
the students to access an Intranet in support of student-based
learning and teaching. The Intranet developed for, and in conjunction
with, the MA in Electronic Communication and Publishing acts as a
focal point for a diverse collection of information and resources
for students to consult and use in their studies and practical work.
Conclusion
Although having only accepted its fourth intake, the MA in Electronic
Communication and Publishing is proving to be a very popular and
stimulating course. The number of expressions of interest and
applications is steadily increasing. Moreover, the positions in
industry which graduates take up are the best indicators of the
potential for courses of this type. Graduates have been employed
by: Asiaweek / Time (Assistant Producer), BBC Education (Researcher),
BBC Educational Publishing (Marketing Assistant), BBC Online
(Webmaster), Elsevier Science (Editorial Support Co-ordinator),
FOCUs5.net (Singapore) (Marketing Communications Manager), Historical
Manuscripts Commission (Curatorial Officer), NCR Knowledge Labs
(Researcher), Nordstrom.com (USA) (Project Co-ordinator), Premier
Media Partners (Deputy Content Director, Online), RAI (Italy)
(Website editor), Virgin Net (HTML Designer) and the Visual Arts
Data Service (Data Management Officer).
TYPE OF PROPOSAL: paper
TITLE: The M.Phil in History and Computing at the University of
Glasgow
KEYWORDS: teaching, computers in history, research training
AUTHOR: Donald Spaeth
AFFILIATION: School of History and Archaeology, University of
Glasgow
EMAIL: d.spaeth@modhist.arts.gla.ac.uk
ADDRESS: Subject Centre for History, Classics and Archaeology, 1
University Gardens, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, G12 8QQ
FAX: +141 330 5518
TEL: +141 330 3538
The M.Phil in History and Computing, offered by the University of
Glasgow, is now in its twelfth year. It is a one-year taught postgraduate
course providing specialised training in the application of computer-
based methods to substantive problems in history. It aims to give
students a sound methodological grounding in the use of computers in
history. Emphasis is placed on the application of software to historical
problems rather than on programming or quantitative methods. The
M.Phil is designed for students with a background in history or a related
subject who wish training in the application of computers to history, and
who hope to go on to pursue a research degree or another career (e.g. in
archives, teaching or humanities computing) in which knowledge of
computers may be of assistance. No prior computing experience is
required.
The M.Phil grew out of the DISH Project, a project funded by a UK
agency (the Computer Board) in 1985 to promote the use of computers in
history teaching. In the late 1980s DISH set up a laboratory of computers
and launched an undergraduate course called 'Computing for Historians',
to which many history academics contributed. (Morgan and Trainor
1990; Spaeth and Cameron 2000). The infrastructure was therefore in
place for a postgraduate programme. The greatest obstacle in the early
years of the course was the reluctance of one of the University's four
history departments to co-operate with the course. Ultimately, however,
DISH provided the seeds for the coalescence of these and other
departments in a School of History and Archaeology. Since its
beginnings the programme has been well-supported by the University,
both in the continued updating of the computing facilities and in the
provision of staff resources. Staff include a Lecturer in Historical
Computing (the author) and a Resource Development Officer for History,
Archaeology, Art History and Classics (Ann Gow); the latter is part of the
infrastructure provided by the Humanities Advanced Technology
Information Institute.
The M.Phil computing presents as a means to an end, rather than as an
end in itself. The course is intended to be relevant to all varieties of
history, and not just to quantitative methods. This approach differs from
those of some other programmes, which see historical computing as a
subset of either humanities computing or quantitative social science.
(Spaeth et al. 1992; Davis et al. 1993). Students take three courses,
including two compulsory core courses, and write a substantial
dissertation: Core Course A: Methods and Techniques of Historical
Computing; Core Course B: Issues and Debates in Historical Computing;
and Select Course. The structure of the programme is designed so that
students either learn techniques in the context of an historical problem
(Core Course A) or are provided with the interpretative context into
which they can fit computer-based techniques (Core B and Select). The
intention is that the dissertation will then integrate history and
computing.
Core Course A is a lab-based course introducing key techniques and
advanced methods in historical computing. Instruction, which includes
examples drawn from real case studies, emphasises historical
interpretation as much as methods and techniques. Term 1 focuses upon
established methods for analysing historical source material, such as the
census. Students use database and spreadsheet software to query existing
databases and apply their findings to substantive historical problems (e.g.
the experience of the Irish in Britain); they also learn to model and design
databases. Term 2 investigates innovative approaches to historical
computing, including digitisation, text mark-up and presentation,
including delivering materials on the Internet. Students also do a pilot
study which helps them to begin work on their dissertations.
Core Course B is a seminar course introducing theoretical issues and key
historiographical debates. Each seminar is led by a different member of
academic staff with expertise in the topic under review, such as Electoral
politics in eighteenth-Century England; Slavery in the American South;
Consumer behaviour; or Wealth-holding in nineteenth-century Britain.
The Select Course enables students to develop a deeper understanding of
an historical period so that they can place new methodologies in their
broader historiographical context, often leading to the dissertation topic.
Students choose from options taught by different staff within the School
of History and Archaeology. Instruction is either by one-to-one tutorial
or taught course, such as the course in the history of medicine taught by
staff from Glasgow's Wellcome Unit for the History of Medicine.
Assessment is most often by essay, since the purpose of the programme
as a whole is to teach students to use the computer as an historical
research tool. For this reasons, must students choose to submit a 15,000
word dissertation based upon computer-based research. However, in
recent years Core Course A has begun to enlarge its focus to encompass
computer-based presentation of resources and results, as well as merely
computer-based analysis, and the new modules may be assessed by
practical work. In October 2000, two students submitted multimedia
dissertations on CD-ROM, in which they presented the results of their
research, but also used the medium to provide the reader with primary
sources (selected and highlighted in a manner akin to quotation in a
conventional bound dissertation). These multimedia dissertations were
primarily assessed on their content; computing techniques were assessed
insofar as they were used effectively to communicate and present
historical results.
The M.Phil in History and Computing has never had a large intake of
students. Cohorts have ranged in size from three to seven students.
These numbers reflect both the specialist nature of the course and the
difficulties which some applicants have in funding their studies. The
course is able to nominate to two ESRC Quota Studentships each year
and nominates one to three students a year to studentships funded by the
Wellcome Trust, for study of the history of medicine. It is rare for more
than one or two students a year to pay their own fees. Unless more
funding is made available, the course is unlikely to attract more students.
This may raise questions about the course's viability (although Core
Course A is also taken by other history postgraduates), since it limits the
number of options that can be offered. These numbers might be thought
to reflect potential students' appraisal of the job market. In fact, the
course has had good success in placing graduates either in research
studentships (enabling them to proceed to a Ph.D) or in jobs, most often
supporting historical or humanities computing.
The M.Phil in History and Computing is currently being reviewed, as part
of a wider review of postgraduate programmes in the School of History
and Archaeology. One stimulus for this reform is to strengthen the
research training element of the M.Phil, so that it continues to be eligible
for studentships in the next few years. Another is to bring these Master's
programmes more in line with one another, increasing the number of
students sharing options and reducing disparities in workloads which that
students taking the M.Phil are required to submit more work (as they tell
us!) than those doing other programmes. The School of History and
Archaeology continues support the M.Phil in History and Computing
strongly, and wishes to maintain its distinctiveness in the future.
References
V. Davis, et al., eds., The Teaching of Historical Computing: An
International Framework (St Katharinen, 1993).
N. J. Morgan and R. H. Trainor. 'Liberator or Libertine? The Computer
in the History Classroom', in Humanities and the Computer, ed. D. S.
Miall (Oxford, 1990), 61-70.
D. Spaeth, et al., eds., Towards an International Curriculum for History
and Computing (St Katherinen, 1992).
D. Spaeth and S. Cameron, 'Computers and Resource-Based History
Teaching: A UK Perspective', Computers and the Humanities 34 (2000):
325-43.