History
Mark Ruff, Ph.D. | mark.ruff@slu.edu
Lisa Lillie, Ph.D. | lisa.lillie@slu.edu
Department of History - St. Louis University
Book an appointment with Dr. Lillie here.
Syllabus Templates, Resources, and Important Dates
Syllabus Templates
The course templates below are provided for all 1818 History instructors. If you are returning faculty, you are welcome to use one of the templates or to copy and paste any updated information into your current syllabi. [Updated May 2024 per university guidelines].
HIST 1110 World History to 1500
HIST 1120 World History Since 1500
HIST 1600 History of the United States of America to 1865
HIST 1610 History of the United States Since 1865
Sample Syllabi from SLU History Professors
Please note that these sample syllabi may not reflect the most recent required statements for SLU and/or 1818 syllabi. We encourage you to use these syllabi to inspire your choice of content, textbooks/readings, and assignments, but also that you closely adhere to the format in each template above.
Prof. Marcus McArthur, HIST 1600
Prof. Enrique Davila, HIST 1610
Prof. George Summers, HIST 1110
Prof. Hal Parker, HIST 1120
Prof. Kenan Nerad, HIST 1120
Sample Syllabi from 1818 Instructors
Dr. Thomas Curran, HIST 1600 and 1610
1818 Academic Calendar, 2024-2025
Please click here for the full academic calendar.
Syllabus Checklist
Please use this checklist to ensure that you have addressed all the 1818 requirements for your syllabi.
Syllabus Submission
Be sure to submit your syllabus through Dual Enroll: https://slu.dualenroll.com. If you have not received your log-in information, contact 1818@slu.edu. Your faculty liaison will provide feedback on the syllabi through Dual Enroll.
Instructions for accessing Dual Enroll are available through the link. Please reach out if you have any questions!
NB: some newly onboarded teachers and schools have been instructed to email their syllabi directly to Dr. Lillie. Unless you have explicit directions to email your syllabi to her, please submit through Dual Enroll.
Important Dates
May 1 Syllabus and Intent-to-Teach window opens
May 15 Intent-to-Teach due
July 26th All syllabi due
Getting Students to Read the Syllabus
I sometimes do a syllabus quiz for extra credit to make sure they've read it, or I may include an "easter egg" for those who read the fine print. For example: in one of the units I might write something like: "and whoever sends me the funniest picture they can find of Alexander Hamilton by Sept. 15th will get 5 extra credit points on an assignment of their choice." Completely optional, but I've found it injects a little fun into the document.
Classroom Visits
We're excited to see you in action! Over the course of the 2023-2024 academic year, we'll be visiting your classrooms to learn more about your teaching tactics and ideas.
Dr. Lillie will reach out to schedule site visits in early September. Please check your school (not SLU) email.
Understanding 1818 Site Visits: - A short PowerPoint with basic information on what to expect during a typical site visit.
Classroom Visit Form (2024-25): This is our general form, and features questions the high school instructor will discuss with the Liaison in order to prepare for the visit. Please download and consult as part of general preparation for your site visit.
Note: this is the general form; some questions may not be applicable to your field of instruction.
National and Regional Resources for History Education
Resources and Support from National & Local Associations
These institutions do a great job of providing lesson plans, resources, and virtual field trips for HS classes and instructors.
National
American Historical Association - Teaching Resources for Historians
AHA - Guidelines for Textbook Selection
AHA - Criteria for Standards in History / Social Studies
Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History
National Women's History Museum
phenomenal virtual exhibit visits are curated and led by wonderful historians. You can book a virtual field trip here.
National Council for History Education
I particularly recommend their free "History Matters" Conversation led each Friday at 9:00 am by Dr. Joanne Freeman, celebrated Yale historian of early America: History Matters (...and so does coffee!)
National History Day Teacher Resources
Theclio.com - an absolutely fantastic website featuring over 40,000 geo-located historical sites across the U.S.! Essentially, google maps for history. There are also 1653 walking tours, virtual tours of museums, heritage trails, and other curated experiences.
Regional
National History Day - Missouri
see the list of last year's projects and winners here
Missouri Humanities (NEH)
AI in the Classroom
Our students are using AI - and many in ways we might not anticipate. We take academic integrity seriously, but AI is more than a plagiarism device. It can also be an incredible tool for the study and dissemination of history.
AI: it's not SkyNet, so what is it really?
Khan Academy, How AI Works
AI in the classroom: to use, or not to use?
Edsurge, "We Can't Keep ChatGpT out of the Classroom, so Let's Address the 'Why' Behind our Fears"
Harvard, "Embracing Artifical Technology in the Classroom"
Wired, "Chat GpT is Unoriginal - And Exactly what Humans Need"
Ethan Mollick, U Penn "One Useful Thing" AI blog: sign up for regular updates
Notable Detractions
LLMs (large language models) like ChatGpT are highly complex text predictors; they are not sentient, or self-aware. There are notable problems with this technology, in large part because it is based on human knowledge - with all its attendant biases. This video shows what happens when AI, Barbie, and bias mix, with culturally toxic results. There is also the problem of A.I. "hallucinations": wholesale fabrications and errors. It's worth stressing these points to students.
“If you don’t know an answer to a question already, I would not give the question to one of these systems,” said Subbarao Kambhampati, a professor and researcher of artificial intelligence at Arizona State University. Read more here.
What do the students say?
The Chronicle - "I'm a student. You have no idea how much we're using ChatGpT."
Initially, this article raised my blood pressure. Then it made me think. Now, it's helped me reorient my attitude to AI and education.
Lesson Ideas (full article here)
"As with many challenging technologies before it, ChatGPT has prompted a strong response from educators, ranging from cautious optimism to outright skepticism. It’s understandable to proceed with caution, since the misuse of AI chatbots like ChatGPT is easily done. However, there can be benefits to incorporating this technology to enhance teaching and learning; consider having open conversations with students regarding the misuse of AI, but also ponder the possibilities of how this technology can be helpful to them as learners.
Here are some ways ChatGPT can be leveraged as a teaching and learning tool:
Feedback assistant: Students can ask ChatGPT for feedback on how to improve their writing. For example, it may suggest a student add more specificity to their writing by incorporating additional examples, adding transitions, or even give recommendations to include alternative perspectives. Consider having students keep record of the feedback they receive to incorporate into their writing, or analyze the feedback and justify if they are valid recommendations or not.
Act as an English Professor and provide recommendations to enhance this paper: [copy and paste text]
Debate partner: To help students exercise strong argumentation, they can prompt ChatGPT to act as a debate partner (Roose, 2023). By asking ChatGPT to take a particular stance on an issue, students can develop counterarguments and spar with the chatbot. This can help students develop deeper understandings of alternative perspectives, prepare for an actual debate in class, or enhance argumentation for a persuasive assignment.
Act as my debate partner for the topic of “Banning Books in Public Schools.” Play the role of a parent who wants to censor texts they feel should not be read by high school students.
Additional point-of-view: Incorporate ChatGPT into a class discussion by modifying the traditional “Think, Pair, Share” format to, “Think, Pair, ChatGPT, Share” (Miller, 2022). Inviting an AI perspective can provide another critical lens for students to collectively analyze.
Ask ChatGPT the same question you’ve posed to students (or have students ask ChatGPT the question). After generating an initial response, try prompting ChatGPT with the following: Now, answer the same question from the perspective of a [insert persona]
Prompt generator: As an educator, consider using ChatGPT to help create discussion prompts for your students on a topic or based on a particular (open access) text. You’ll need to provide the link to the text for ChatGPT to access and develop its questions.
As a journalism professor, create a short prompt that will inspire college students to write an open-ended response about the media’s effect on society.
Quiz creator: ChatGPT can create open-ended or multiple choice quiz questions based on a text you provide (Roose, 2023). Be sure to double-check that questions are accurate.
Develop 5 open-ended and 5 multiple choice questions based on this article [insert link]."
Sample History Lesson Plans using LLMs to teach History (Large Language Models, ex. ChatGpT)
Clio and the Contemporary, "How to Use ChatGpt in the Classroom"
step-by-step lesson plan on Frederick Douglass
Professional Development and Meetup Dates
Summer Connection Conference: July 29th - 30th
PD dates to be announced in early Fall 2024.
Wellness Statement and Mental Health Resources
If you or someone you know needs support now: call or text 988 to reach the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, or visit 988lifeline.org to chat online.
Community Resources
The following resources are available to anyone who may need support:
The Optum Emotional Support Help Line (866-342-6892) connects callers to caring professionals and resources 24/7.
SSM Health Behavioral Health Urgent Care is a walk-in clinic treating adults and children in urgent need of care for mental health crises
St. Louis University Wellness Statement (for optional inclusion on syllabi)
Instructor Note: The language below encourages students to contact you for course-related concerns. If you wish to customize the language to include other members of an instructional team (e.g., Teaching Assistants, co-instructors), download the MS Word version, customize the language, and insert it in your syllabus. If you do not wish to customize the statement, simply remove this instructor note and add the content below to your syllabus.
All students experience stressors and challenges at some point, and seeking support is beneficial. Such challenges may be the result of academic concerns (such as those related to particular assignments or content in a course), or they may be more personal in nature (such as concerns related to relationships, mental health, loss, identities, alcohol or drugs, housing or food security, or finances, among other things). If you experience these or other difficulties, please consider seeking support from the resources available to you.
For concerns related to this course, please contact me. I am invested in your success and will support your success in the ways I can.
Additionally, you have access to the many resources SLU provides in support of your personal wellness. You will find a list of available resources on the Well-being page of the SLU website.
If you or someone you know is experiencing a crisis: please consult the Crisis Support and Warning Signs on the University Counseling Center website.
In the spirit of cura personalis, the University sees your academic success as connected to your health and well-being and provides resources to support your holistic wellness.
Upcoming Campus Events - Save the Date!
Helpful Links for Teaching Advanced College Credit Courses
Resources for Teaching Dual Credit
Taking the Duel Out of Dual Credit - webinar from NACEP (pdf version)
The Funnel to Passing AP Exams
interactive tool which allows you to see how many students take AP exams per state, and filter pass rates by demographic. Helps to highlight some of the limitations of the AP system. FYI, data is from 2021.
Balancing Flexibility and Rigor to Advance Equity in Course Design
Libraries and Online Archives
Fordham Internet History Sourcebook Website
an oldie but a goodie, full of primary sources for World, Western, and American History.
Folger Shakespeare Library - full texts and other teaching resources
General Pedagogy
Rob Jenkins, "How I learned to Stop Worrying and Trust Students"
Cult of Pedagogy - teaching blog & podcast with resources
I recommend their podcast, particularly this one for teaching difficult topics like slavery.
1818 Program Links
General Saint Louis University Links
Other Resources