Final Video Project
Content-Topic and Theme
Your final project should explore a foundational historical process in the making of the United States. It should align with the topics discussed in class, the textbook, and the weekly modules. And it should take place at a certain point within the class time period- from initial colonization to the end of the reconstruction era (1600s-1877).
Project Objective
To create an engaging narrative in which you identify the topic and theme, provide context, explore and analyze the different sources and challenge some of their assumptions and arguments. It also provides the space for a reflection on how these historical processes still influence our society in the present day.
Format: Video Presentation
- The final projectshould be a video presentation (the equivalent of a 10-page analytical research historical essay). AKA analytical history project.
- It is not a paper but a video presentation.
- Think of it as a short documentary (10-12 minutes long).
- The purpose of an analytical history project is to provide arguments and evidence in narrative form to prove a specific thesis (main argument).
- Please keep in mind that you should let the evidence lead you as you analyze and contextualize it.
- Evidence, professionally analyzed and contextualized, should form and support your argument. Doing it backwards leads to bias confirmation, and it can be called many thing but “history” is not one of them.
- The success of an analytical history project rests on the creators and authors’ ability to present information in a clear and concise manner so that the public may easily follow the analysis.
- This argument should demonstrate insight by employing secondary and primary sources to prove the basic claim.
- 3 academic journal articles specializing on your topic
- See library database- particularly JSTOR
- No older than 1990
- Reviews of books or historiographic essays do not count.
- 3 professional/popular(but non-academic) sources;
- org, the Smithsonian, National Archives teaching tools…
- Dictionaries and encyclopedias may be consulted- but they do not count for required sources (they should be included in the bibliography and referenced if consulted).
- 3 primary sources for your project
- Think of the primary sources used in class and in the textbook- and how they are analyzes and used to support an argument.
- 3 academic journal articles specializing on your topic
You may submit your project as video using any app supported by CANVAS
An easy way to do this is by creating a Power Point slide show with images and talking points- adding narration to it, and sabing it as an MP3 file.
Narrated Power Point:
1 slide with student's names, class, semester and date, professor’s name, and project title.
Introduce yourselves.
The title should be both creative and descriptive.
1-2 slides to introduce the project’s topic, theme, and arguments.
Think of it as the introduction part of a term paper assignment.
2-3 slides to provide the context: What, When, where, and who
Context is part of the introduction- think of it as placing the viewer withing a historical process or debate.
4-5 slides explaining the main points of the project, your findings, your arguments.
Think of this part as the middle part of a written assignment in which you address the issues raised in the introduction, develop arguments, and support them with sources.
One slide per argument.
Slides should include quotes from the sources- and examples to support the arguments.
The slides should contain images!!!!
1-2 slides concluding and restating what the topic is, the main argument(s), major findings- and why this topic got your attention in the first place; tell the viewer how the project and your understanding of the topic and theme in question changed throughout the process; and what you hope they learn from it.
1 slide with the full bibliography of works used. (You must include all the works used for this project.) DO NOT read the Bibliography- they are like the credits at the end of a documentary or a movie.
Creating a script (Narration)
It is very important that you create a narrative to go along with the slides- before you record the video.
Create a script (a narration) highlighting the main points, arguments, and findings.
Keep the content in the slides- lean.
The narration should not be a reading of what’s in the slides. It should be a discussion of the material included in the slides.
Technical Part 2 ways for completing the project:
- You may create a Narrated PowerPoint or Google Slides Presentation- save it as MP4 video file, and upload it using Panopto.
- You may create a Power Point or Google Slides presentation – upload it to Panopto- and create a video using the Panopto App.
When you open Panopto on canvas you get these options:
“To get started, drop any video from your computer here or click the Create button to make a new recording.” Choose “drop” if you went with option number 1; and “create” if you went with number 2.
If you choose number 1, follow these steps:
Add narration and discussion to the PowerPoint/Google Slides Presentation
Video: Add Narration to PowerPointLinks to an external site.Links to an external site.
Video: Adding Narration to Google Slides Links to an external site.Links to an external site.
When the narrated presentation is fully edited- save it as a MP4 file from Power Point/Google Slide.
The conversion to MPA video-audio file might take a while.
Make sure that you give the file a name that it is easy to remember and find.
Video: How to Save a PowerPoint Presentation as a MP4 Video FileLinks to an external site.
Links to an external site. Links to an external site.
Video: Saving Google Slides in Video FormatLinks to an external site.Links to an external site. Links to an external site.
Submit Panopto video assignment.
When you open Panopto on canvas you get these options:
“To get started, drop any video from your computer here or click the Create button to make a new recording.” Choose “drop” if you went with option number 1; and “create” if you went with number 2.
Rubric
Short Documentary Rubric
| Criteria | Ratings | Pts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeEthical and Professional Use of Sources- In-text quotes and citations are included and correctly formatted using Chicago style. - Bibliography slide lists all sources used, formatted according to the UNP documentation guide. |
| 10 pts | ||
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeRelevance of Sources- Primary and secondary sources are relevant and directly speak to the topic(s) explored. - Sources are credible and appropriate for the documentary's subject matter. |
| 10 pts | ||
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeExplanation and Support- Evidence and sources quoted and paraphrased are clearly explained. - Sources effectively support the documentary's arguments and enhance the viewer's understanding. |
| 15 pts | ||
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeGrammar and Mechanics- The project is free of typos, grammar, spelling, and punctuation mistakes. - Sentences are logical, coherent, and contribute to the overall clarity of the documentary. |
| 10 pts | ||
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeLength Requirement- The project meets the specified length requirement, ensuring comprehensive coverage of the topic. |
| 10 pts | ||
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeTitle Slide- Includes student's names, class, semester and date, professor’s name, and a creative and descriptive project title. |
| 2 pts | ||
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeIntroduction Slide(s)- 1-2 slides introducing the project’s topic, theme, and arguments. - Provides a clear overview of what the documentary will cover. |
| 6 pts | ||
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeContext Slides- 2-3 slides providing accurate and relevant context: What, When, Where, and Who. - Context helps place the viewer within a historical process or debate. |
| 15 pts | ||
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeContent and Argument(s) Slides- 4-5 slides explaining the main points of the project, findings, and arguments. - Develops arguments raised in the introduction and supports them with sources. |
| 25 pts | ||
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeConclusion Slide(s)- 1-2 slides concluding and restating the topic, main argument(s), major findings, and personal reflections. - Explains how the project and understanding of the topic evolved and what the viewer should learn from it. |
| 10 pts | ||
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeVisual Appeal- Project is aesthetically sound, with images that speak to the topic and enhance the presentation. |
| 6 pts | ||
This criterion is linked to a Learning OutcomeCreativity and Engagement- Slides are creatively designed and engaging for the viewer, making the documentary visually appealing and interesting. |
| 6 pts | ||
Total Points: 125 The root of the Civil War was the preservation of slavery and the perception by the federal government that it endangered its enlargement. Though economic and political tensions certainly did exist, primary source evidence unquestionably demonstrates that secession in the south was overwhelmingly concerned with the preservation of slavery. For example, South Carolina's "Declaration of the Immediate Causes" especially clarifies that the North's failure to carry out the Fugitive Slave Act and aggression against slavery had caused secession ("Declaration of the Immediate Causes," 1860). Mississippi’s secession declaration similarly asserted, “Our position is thoroughly identified with the institution of slavery.” These documents show that southern leaders were not just defending states’ rights in general, but specifically the right to uphold slavery. Historically, Abraham Lincoln's 1860 election raised southern fears. Although Lincoln had not initially advocated eliminating slavery where it had already been established, his opposition to its expansion disturbed the balance of power in Congress. The broader context is that decades of sectional compromise—e.g., the Missouri Compromise and the Compromise of 1850—no longer could contain the break. And to make the argument even stronger, I would examine private letters between southern politicians and newspaper editorials of the period to see what the public in general perceived the war to be. But the official secession documents provide immediate, compelling proof that slavery—in contrast to tariffs or theoretical states' rights—was the proximate reason for secession and, thus, the Civil War. |