Students should be able to:

• Explain why an archives is different from a school or public library
• Accurately describe the events or issues highlighted in their assigned documents
• Formulate analytical questions by identifying external information needed to fully understand their assigned document
• Explain how various documents in this archival collection relate to one another
• Craft a research paper with an argument-based thesis that blends analysis of their document and secondary source research

Students read Brian Purnell’s article “Drive Awhile for Freedom,” which offers a good introduction to Brooklyn CORE (see full citation in Further Reading below). They also read the biographical/historical note excerpted from the collection finding aid.

Appropriate document selection is key to teaching students how to create a story out of archival material. To choose documents that will help students experience this project in a manageable way:

• Use an archival collection in which individual folders represent discrete but related themes or sub-topics. (For example, the CORE collection contains subject files labelled with topics like “Traffic” or “Rent Strikes,” with the names of specific discrimination cases, or with campaigns like the “Christmas Buying Boycott.”)
• Select documents from different folders for every group. Once the groups get into the original folders, it is best that two groups do not have to share a folder.
• Each document should be roughly the same length, so that students move at about the same pace through the material.
• If possible, select documents in different formats (newspaper articles, correspondence, press releases, etc.) to expose students to the variety of resources available in the archive.
• Documents should all connect in some way. Students might not initially see the connections, but the instructor should ask them questions about the documents that will help them see the broader story at play.
• Review each main document for vocabulary and concepts that your students may find difficult and make sure to provide them with the tools to understand them. Once the students get to the whole folder, empower them to find answers to questions on their own by using internet resources, dictionaries, and other reference materials. Then ask them how that concept connects to the issues at play in their assigned document.

Groups of three students are assigned one of the following topics:

• housing discrimination
• employment discrimination
• traffic safety in black neighborhoods
• poor sanitation
• rent strikes

This group size ensures that everyone can see and touch the document and that each student the opportunity to participate in discussions.

Groups are assigned based on observed strengths, weaknesses, participation to date, and overall student compatibility. I also attempt to break up students who always sit together in class to help the students network beyond their established social circles. In the archives, groups are seated far enough apart that conversations don’t interfere with other groups.

Students work in these groups for all three visits to the archives. During the first visit, each group will look at a single document and begin to develop analytical questions. On the second visit, they will examine the other groups’ documents and being to make connections among the materials. On the third visit, their original document will be reintegrated into the archival folder from which it came; they will examine the entire folder. These visits occur once a week for three weeks.

Visit 1 Agenda

During the first visit, each group familiarizes themselves with a single document related to their topic. A student handout instructs students to read the document aloud, and then to discuss it based on a set of questions about the experience.

Wrap Up

Each group introduces their document and topic to the class, highlights important passages or aspects of their document, and identifies themes and common questions with the other groups’ documents. This wrap up promotes summarization skills and sparks a curiosity about what they will see in the next visit.

Visit 2 Agenda

In this visit, students briefly review their document from the first visit, and then rotate among the other groups’ stations to look for connections across the documents. At each document station, students will use a handout with a set of questions to assess how their document links to each of the other groups’ documents.

Wrap Up

Students move into a large circle to discuss the documents as a set. Each group highlights which documents offered the most insight for understanding their first document, and shares additional questions prompted by the new documents.

Visit 3 Agenda

In this visit, each group’s original document is reintegrated into the folder in the archival collection in which it is normally kept. These folders usually contain many documents, so students are encouraged to take photographs and to skim through the material to look for useful items. Again, they are guided by a handout.

This visit offers a good opportunity to allow the students to feel slightly overwhelmed in a well-controlled environment. Students begin to understand the volume of material historians explore when they work in the archives. They also understand that there may be many questions that they are not able to answer by using just one folder, one collection, or one repository.

Wrap Up

Students reconvene to discuss what they learned about the context and details of the event highlighted in their original document.

Class Blog

In five blog posts, students individually describe their experience in the archives and reflect on their developing understanding of history as a discipline. The blog allows students to practice writing for an audience, and to discuss their experiences with one another. Each week, some students are responsible for posting an analytical question and the rest are required to respond in the comment section.  Doing this over the course of the semester builds an online dialogue. 

See prompts and assessment rubric here.

Research Paper

Students individually write a 4 – 6 page research paper on their group’s topic. The handouts that accompany each visit help each student develop the analytical question he or she will address in the paper. Students craft a thesis that responds to their question and support their argument with archival materials and secondary sources.

I provide a brief bibliography of scholarly secondary sources related to the content for students to utilize (see Further Reading below), but I encourage them to emphasize archival sources as they craft their story.

See instructions and assessment rubric here.