Q&A: All your Questions answered here
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HI177: Q&A
Q: When are your feedback/ advice/office hours?
Monday (online/ Teams): 2:00-3:00
Tuesday (in person, FAB 3.43): 11:00-12:00
Q: Where is your office?
FAB: 3.43.
Q: Do I need to make an appointment?
No. You can walk-in/call in
Q: Will you give us a link for teams/online meetings?
No. Go on Teams, type in my name and select ‘call’. For more information, see: https://support.microsoft.com/en-gb/office/make-a-call-in-microsoft-teams-free-6ea0bc65-f6bd-46ab-bd35-7ee5e2104e3a
Q: What if I have a lecture/ seminar during your Office hours?
You can request an appointment.
Q: What are office/ feedback/advice hours for? What can I talk about during office hours?
You can ask questions about the readings, catch up on readings, lectures and seminars if you missed them or if you need extra help. You can ask questions that you couldn’t ask during lectures or seminars. You can ask questions about essays. You can discuss feedback. You can chat about life in general.
Note: Office/feedback hours are especially important for students who may benefit from one-on-one contact such first generation students, students with disabilities, students who may have questions about Africa but do not feel comfortable asking them in the public etc.
Q: What’s your email policy?
All emails will be answered during working days/ working hours.
Note: Please follow the University’s email etiquette: https://warwick.ac.uk/services/its/servicessupport/email/etiquette/
Q: Do I need to have priory knowledge of African History?
No. This module attracts open minded individuals who are seeking to broaden their perspectives, increase their understanding of the world and develop intercultural skills. This module which is designed for students who have and do not have prior knowledge of African history. The module lecture and seminar programme and assessments are designed to help you acquire various skills (such as oral, writing, and intercultural competency skills) and reflect Warwick’s three teaching strategies: internationalisation, student research and interdisciplinarity. To get the most out of this course, you will need to actively participate in all activities including reading the assigned material and seminar discussions.
Q: I have never studied African history. What (tiny, pocket-sized) book do you suggest for a beginner?
I strongly recommend two books, both available in the library as E-books (you will find them on the Talis for week 2);
A very small pocket size book by John Parker &Richard Rathbone: A history of Africa: A very short introduction (University of Oxford Press, 2007). It is designed for beginners; they cover millennial of information in just a few pages and you just need an hour or two to finish the text. "These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly." https://www.amazon.co.uk/African-History-Short-Introduction-Introductions/
If you are interested in the question of power, sources or how history 'is made' in the archives and how history is told, the classification of non-western world as 'without usable history,' by some Western thinkers such as the German philosopher Georg Hegel who argued that Africa “is no historical part of the world; it has no movement or development to exhibit," I strongly recommend Haitian anthro-historian Michel-Rolph Trouillot. Silencing the Past. Power and the Production of History (Read Chapter 1. The Power in the story). " https://www.amazon.co.uk/Silencing-Past-20th-Anniversary-Production/dp/0807080535
Q: Where can I find reading materials for this module?
On the main module page, you will find; the lecture and seminar programmes, aims, assessment and seminar instructions. You will also find a list of primary sources/online resources and general bibliography
On Moodle: you will find lecture slides, essay writing resources, essay questions and Forum.
On Talis, you will find weekly readings and recommended readings
Q: What is the difference between a lecture and a seminar? What should I expect?
Weekly lectures will provide a general background, an overview, a summary of ideas.
“Lectures are an important part of the learning experience and will play a central role in your preparation for seminars in the early years of your degree. They are never a substitute for reading [ or the seminar], but they will give you a broad framework within which to understand the main themes of the module and the particular material you are reading. Listening to a lecture is not a passive activity.” For more, see, https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/course-lectures-seminars
Seminars elaborate the themes covered in the lectures but concentrate on regional case studies and debates within the historiography. “Seminars are your most important regular commitment, and attendance is compulsory... Contributing to seminars is central to the process of learning. As well as enhancing your learning of the topic of the seminar, contributing to seminars allows you to develop oral communication and group-work skills which are likely to be as important as your writing skills in whatever you find yourself doing when you have finished at Warwick. Potential employers are usually just as interested in what your tutors have to say about your contribution to seminars as they are in the marks you get for essays or exams, which require a distinctive set of skills…” For more, see https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/course-lectures-seminars
Q: What am I expected to do during lectures and seminars?
Lectures: Actively listen, take notes, ask questions where you don’t understand.
Seminars: Read the material in advance, take notes, post on Forum, contribute to the classroom discussion.
Q: What is expected of me before attending seminars? How can I prepare myself for lectures and seminars?
“You are expected to come to seminars fully prepared, having done the readings or other activities required in advance…You should expect to participate in discussions which are grounded in the readings.” For more, see https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/course-lectures-seminars
Students’ active and informed participation is crucial to the success of the class. Your seminar contribution takes the form of weekly Forum contribution on Moodle and Seminar discussions. Students are expected to carefully read the assigned texts each week and to share with others on Moodle what they found most intriguing or problematic in the texts. There is no word limit but try to make your comment as short as possible. The comments must be posted on Moodle by Midnight, the day before the class meeting. Comments must be posted whether or not you intend to attend class meetings. If you have a medical condition that prevents you from participating in seminar discussion, please make sure to inform Wellbeing (link here.) to inform the seminar tutor and module convenor. You will still be expected to participate in the online Forum on Moodle.
Q: What is the Warwick seminar/lecture etiquette?
“Everyone in the seminar (both students and tutors) should expect to be respected and treated with dignity in line with Warwick’s values and our department community expectations.
At Warwick, “we expect history seminars to be respectful and accountable spaces in which everyone in the seminar (both students and tutors) share responsibility for upholding these values…. Accountability means being responsible for yourself, your intentions, words, and actions. It means entering a space with good intentions, but understanding that aligning your intent with action is the true test of commitment” … For more, see https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/course-lectures-seminars
https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/dept-expectations
Q: Will I encounter violent material?
Yes: The lecture will cover some of the most violent events of the 19th century. The lectures and readings contain discussions of all forms of violence: racial, ethnic, sexual (genocide/ holocaust, apartheid, settler colonialism, etc).
Q: Will we discuss contemporary events and events that I may find offensive?
Yes. This is an inclusive space but you may encounter material that might be offensive to you. "History is not a comfortable subject; it includes confronting uncomfortable and unsettling aspects of the past, elements of which may continue to resonate and inspire controversy and debate today, but which are an unavoidable part of the process of historical recovery and essential to the rigour of historical enquiry. History operates best when its practitioners reflect the diversity of human society and thought, bringing different perspectives and life experiences to bear on the past, and engage in self-reflection and critique to test and question both their own and the discipline’s approaches to studying the past. In particular, history has the capacity to create a balanced understanding of the past through examination of non-dominant and traditionally marginalised cultures."https://www.qaa.ac.uk/docs/qaa/sbs/sbs-history-22.pdf?sfvrsn=beaedc81_4
The focus of this module is Africans and their experience. So, it is important to be prepared to read and discuss material that may question our understanding of world events.
Note: we will not only discuss violent events by former colonial powers such as Britain, France, German but by other non-colonising western powers including the US, Israel and Russia. These nations continue to play a significant role in conflict areas in Africa.
On history as an uncomfortable, please see the history subject bench mark: https://www.qaa.ac.uk/docs/qaa/sbs/sbs-history-22.pdf?sfvrsn=beaedc81_4
Q: Will we talk about the present events?
Yes. ‘History is alive!’ We will discuss the legacies of colonialism, we will discuss current politician’s and other public officials’ speeches, writings in newspapers, twitter(X) etc. to supplement peer reviewed articles. A list of external resources; primary sources, blogs, films, music is provided on the module page: https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/modules/hi177/resources/
Q: Should I expect the same teaching style for all my modules?
No. You should expect a diverse range of teaching activities and teaching styles.
Q: Where can I find lecture slides?
Lecture slides can be found on Moodle
Q: Are lectures recorded?
Due to privacy reasons, no recordings will be made but detailed lecture slides are provided. Here is feedback from last year about lectures slides:
‘The lecture notes are a lot more detailed than other modules which is a great help as i can often rely upon the lectures to give me a base level of knowledge, that i can later research and expand upon myself.’
‘The lectures and seminars are very engaging and go into more detail than other modules.’
On recordings, see https://warwick.ac.uk/services/aro/dar/quality/categories/goodpractice/lecturecapturepolicy/recordinglectures/
Q: Where can I find the assigned reading materials?
The weekly reading materials can be found on Talis.
Q: How many articles do I have to read per week? How much time am I expected to spend preparing for seminars?
Three articles
Note: “Our taught courses are demanding and intensive. Normally students are expected to devote the equivalent of a 37.5-hour week to each week of their studies, including reading, research and preparation time, not just lectures, seminars and workshops. Students may have difficulty meeting the attendance and reading requirements if they take on a significant amount of paid work while studying. Students who live a great distance from the university campus may also struggle to complete the course successfully.” See https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/dept-attendance
Q: How do I read academic texts?
You are expected to read critically. This means that you are not just reading to remember information (or to know) but you are interrogating the text. Are the assumptions made by the author/s reasonable? (remember you have three articles, so you can compare them),Is the central argument clear? does the evidence support the argument etc?
You have to read creatively. In short, there 3 reading techniques are: Scanning , Skimming and Close reading.
Start by reading the introduction/abstract to get an idea about what the article is about (in academic texts, the introduction is where the authors indicates the argument of the article and kind of scholarly argument they are intervening in and what kind of evidence they will use). skim through the article, noting relevant sections and parts you might need to read closely[usually all the parts]. make notes; summarise the key arguments, write down questions you may have/ questions the text raises
Note what you found exciting, problematic, unclear etc.
You will use the same texts to write your essays, so you will save yourself time if you take notes, highlight important sections.) You can also form study groups and share notes etc (as a student, I found study groups particularly useful; since you will be doing a lot of independent learning, peer learning will help you.
If you need more information about how to read, write etc, please reach out to your seminar tutors. Office hours are an opportunity to seek help on reading, writing etc.
Q: What if I can’t attend seminars?
Seminar attendance is mandatory but “if you are prevented from attending a seminar or study trip because of illness or serious personal problems, you must inform the department and seminar tutor as soon as possible.” https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/dept-attendance
Q: What is the assessment structure?
1.Seminar participation/engagement (Classroom discussion and online Forum): 10%
2. 1000-word piece of introductory writing (10%)
3.2000-word essay (30%)
4.3000-word essay (50%)
Q:What is being assessed in seminar contribution?
Students’ active and informed participation is crucial to the success of the class. Your seminar contribution takes the form of weekly Forum contribution on Moodle and Seminar discussions. Students are expected to carefully read the assigned texts each week and to share with others on Moodle what they found most intriguing or problematic in the texts. There is no word limit but try to make your comment as short as possible. The comments must be posted on Moodle by Midnight, the day before the class meeting. Comments must be posted whether or not you intend to attend class meetings. If you have a medical condition that prevents you from participating in seminar discussion, please make sure to inform Wellbeing (link here.) to inform the seminar tutor and module convenor. You will still be expected to participate in the online Forum on Moodle.
What is being assessed in seminars?
- Analysis: engagement with and evaluation of readings; focus on meaning rather than description; evidence and argument-driven responses to seminar questions
- Knowledge and Understanding: evidence of preparation of core and/or wider reading; demonstrates comprehension of the readings and/or seminar questions.
- Oral Communication: clarity of expression; persuasiveness; respectfulness and inclusivity; asking useful/probing questions; contributions that extend the discussion.
- Methodological Approaches: ability to discern, explain, or engage with historiographical or methodological issues raised by the readings and/or seminar questions.
Q: Do I need to post on Forum even if I’m attending seminars?
Yes. This is what former student said about Forum: “I find the mandatory weekly pre-seminar comments helpful; it prompts you to reflect on the readings before going into the session, & therefore makes discussion within these easier. It's also interesting to read everyone else's perspectives/ thoughts - particularly those not in your seminar group.”
Q: How many essays?
You will be required to write a total of 3 essays with varying word lengths:
1000-word piece of introductory writing (10%)
2,000-word essay (30%)
3,000-word essay (50%)
Q: Where can I find essay questions?
On Moodle. Make sure to pay attention to word cues in the question such as ‘to what extent’ ‘Assess’ ‘Discuss’ ‘How far’ etc. Ask yourself; are you really answering the question? See https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/essaywriting
Q: Can I propose my own question?
Yes. But the question MUST be approved by the seminar tutor. This will require you to have a meeting with the seminar tutor to discuss the question. Why? Because a poorly worded question can result into a poor answer. See https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/essaywriting
Q: Where can I find writing resources.
The undergraduate handbook contains essay writing instructions, instructions about citation other writing resources can be found on Moodle.
Note: “Writing an essay involves skills of discussion and argument which differ from those that might be used in the informal setting of a seminar. In the first place, argument and analysis in essays will usually have to be more carefully.” So, use the essay writing check list: https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/essaywriting
The check list also has information on referencing, citation, plagiarism, deadlines, penalties for late submission, word count, File naming etc. For more information see: https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/assess-coursework
Note: It is your responsibility to make your work accessible and readable. You must not only think about how you are formulating your argument and presenting evidence (more instructions on this can be found on Moodle and in the Undergraduate handbook) but also styling issues.
- You will be penalised for not following the rules which you can find here:https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/essaywriting
- You must use Chicago Style or MHRA: Here are examples on how to use these styles: https://warwick.ac.uk/fac/arts/history/students/undergraduate/essaywriting
- You must make follow the conventions of historical writing. Pay close attention to how the various authors of the articles you are reading in seminars put forward their arguments and how they use evidence to develop the argument. You will find on Moodle, short instructional articles on how to write a history essay). You are expected to demonstrate cultural competence, so read closely the material under 'Writing about Africa' in Week.
- All essays must not go above word limits are absolute and do not include footnotes or the bibliography. Essays which exceed the word limit will be penalised.
- The filename should contain your student number, the module code, assignment name E.g.,
1234567 – HI177 - Source Review. pdf. DO NOT WRITE YOUR NAME - Font: Use appropriate fonts like New Times Roman or Calibri
- Font size and spacing: All essays must be 12 point: space: 1.5 or double spaced.
- All extension requests should be made via Tabula in advance of the published assessment deadline.
Q: Where can I find the essay template?
The essay template can be downloaded from Moodle. You MUST use this template.
Q: Can you read my draft essay and provide feedback before I submit it?
No, but we can give general essay writing advice during office/advice hours.
Q: When are essay deadlines?
The deadlines can be found on Tabula
Q How and when will I get feedback?
You will receive feedback on your essays and assignments on Tabula.
‘Meetings to discuss feedback are optional, but you are strongly encouraged to take the opportunity to receive individual advice on how to strengthen your work. You will also be asked to provide feedback on the module content and delivery at several points throughout the year so that we can address any problems and make any necessary adjustments to the syllabus and teaching practice. This feedback is anonymous.’
Q: Can I see some of the past feedback about the module?
This is some of what former students had to say about the module last year, 2023/24
‘The most impactful thing is definitely the challenging reading ascribed each week which has strengthened by critical and analytical engagement with history more general and specifically.’
‘The lectures and the lecturers identity as Ugandan has made them voice African history in a more personal, and impactful way’
‘The seminar discussions, where we were able to engage with the seminar through asking questions and talking about the essential readings helped to consolidate my understanding. With the seminars being a chance for us to be able to iron out any misunderstandings, I believe that this was essential in ensuring greater understanding and perspective.’
‘The documentaries that were linked in the reading list helped me a lot because sometimes its much more engaging to watch a video than read 50 pages of an article.’
‘I enjoyed learning about the East African Arabic Slave trade. This was very enlightening as i had very very little knowledge of this happening due to how narrow our national curriculum looks at the transatlantic slave trade. I also really enjoyed looking at different ethnic wars and conflicts, they were very challenging.’
‘I find the mandatory weekly pre-seminar comments helpful; it prompts you to reflect on the readings before going into the session, & therefore makes discussion within these easier. It's also interesting to read everyone else's perspectives/ thoughts - particularly those not in your seminar group.’
‘One thing that had the most impact on my learning was learning about how Africa has been represented by the West, especially because I carried unconscious assumptions about the continent. Discussions on this topic broadened my perspective on how we write African history, and indeed, how we can represent Africa in a sensitive and contemporary manner.’
‘I think lectures and the reading discussing seperate elements of the same topic helps, as it demands a higher level of focus while carrying out both, as a result I feel like I learn more in comparison to my other modules.’
‘The lecture notes are a lot more detailed than other modules which is a great help as i can often rely upon the lectures to give me a base level of knowledge, that i can later research and expand upon myself.’
‘The lectures and seminars are very engaging and go into more detail than other modules.’
‘The readings provide a good overview of the topic whilst also providing a case study that applies to the topic.’
‘The seminar discussion is very helpful, to get an understanding of the readings from peer perspective.’
‘The seminar contribution allows a great detail of analysis on historiography which is useful in expanding these skills.’
‘The lectures and seminars on pre colonial Africa as I had almost no knowledge on Africa before European rule before this.’
‘The reading is always engaging and helpful in reiterating the points made within the lecture.’
‘The structure of the seminars allows us to engage with the texts in a deep, critical way.’
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