Records and Evidence examines the ways in which evidence is deployed in support of discourses across the humanities, how it is validated and what assumptions are made in its synthesis. It will review the way evidence is treated from a variety of theoretical perspectives.

10 x 1 hour lectures

10 x 1 hour workshops in Archives or Special Collections or with Collections items via the Virtual Collections Classroom

ARTMED5028

INFOSTUD5035

None

40% staff assessment of individual oral presentation of "Archives Explored" poster on a record/object/topic of the students' choice (10 minutes)

60% essay of c.3,000 words

This course aims to:

■ Explore professional principles and concepts in order to provide a sound foundation from which to begin professional practice.

■ Evaluate at the ways in which people from different disciplines use records as evidence.

■ Review similarities and difference approaches that can be used to inform the records professional.

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ Explain what constitutes a 'record', and how it might be used as evidence in order to build an argument;

■ Explain the difference between a primary and a secondary source, and understand how one is developed from the other;

■ Develop an awareness of the process behind the privileging or appraisal of different record types, and an appreciation of how what survives to be used as evidence can influence discourse;

■ Describe what is meant by texts, and how evidence is represented in various formats, and of record authentication issues and an understanding of the legal admissibility of certain types of record;

■ Describe the theoretical concerns about the nature of evidence in the humanities.

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.