History 330

HIST 330    
African American History to 1865 (US) (WI)

Catalog Entry

HIST 330    
African American History to 1865 (US) (WI)
Three hours lecture/discussion: (3)

Prerequisite: Three hours of History at the 100 level.

Examines the social, political, economic and cultural history of African Americans in the United States from the early 1600s to Emancipation. Topics include the Atlantic Slave Trade, the Origins of Slavery in British North America, Colonial Slavery and the Revolutionary Era, the development of a free black community, Antebellum Slavery, the Antebellum Free African American Population, Civil War, and Emancipation.

Note(s): Cultural or Behavioral Analysis designated course.



Detailed Description of Content of Course
•    Early Presence of Africans
•    Atlantic Slave Trade
•    Origins of Slavery in British North America
•    Free Blacks during the Colonial Era
•    Colonial Slavery
•    African Americans During the Revolutionary Era
•    Growth of Free Black Community
•    Blacks in the Early National Era
•    Slavery in the Antebellum South
•    Free African American Community
•    Civil War and Emancipation


Detailed Description of Conduct of Course

HIST 330 utilizes a variety of pedagogical tools depending on the class makeup and the topic under discussion. Some of the instructional strategies applied include lecture, group and class discussions, multi-media presentations, student/class debates, and primary source analysis.


Goals and Objectives of the Course

Departmental Goals and Objectives:
1. Students will practice thinking critically and analytically about historical issues, acquire a broader knowledge and deeper understanding of pertinent historical events and processes, and cultivate a familiarity with the concepts of historical argument and interpretation.

2. Students will develop disciplinary research skills by designing strategies to locate and analyze primary and secondary source evidence, processing and organizing the resultant data, and composing proper citation and bibliographical entries.

3. Students will apply their critical thinking, research, and compositional skills to the creation and presentation of thesis driven essays that discuss, for example, historical social, economic, political, and/or cultural developments and that address issues such as the causes and consequences of historical change and continuity.

Course Goals and Objectives:
Upon completion of HIST 330, students will be able to identify, describe and discuss major themes of African American history including but not limited to:
•    African presence in North America prior to 1619
•    The workings of the Atlantic Slave Trade
•    The debate surrounding the origins of slavery in British North America
•    Lives of free blacks and slaves in early colonial history
•    African American participation, for both the British and Patriots, during the American Revolution
•    The development of the free black community in the wake of the American Revolution
•    Work, culture, and resistance of both the slave population and the free black population in the decades before the Civil War
•    Contribution of African Americans to the Confederate and Union during the Civil War
•    How emancipation came about in the United States


Assessment Measures

Knowledge and understanding of the material covered in this course will be measured using an array of assessment tools that may include, among other things, class attendance and participation, written examinations, formal writing assignments of various types, and informal writing assignments. All exercises are designed to expand the student's ability to evaluate historical events and to develop his or her ability to compose persuasive arguments.


Other Course Information

None


Review and Approval
October 2010 Reviewed and Approved by Sharon A. Roger Hepburn, Chair


04/2011

March 01, 2021