Dr.

Katherine Hubler
School of History, Philosophy, and Religion
hublerk@oregonstate.edu

CONNECTING STUDENTS
WITH THE PAST, THE
FUTURE, AND ONE
ANOTHER
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 Teaching in this moment, in this world
• Personal connection
• Empathy
• Recognition that we carry the past with us

Dr. Katherine Hubler OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY 1

hublerk@oregonstate.edu
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 “History . . . is not merely something
to be read. And it does not refer
merely, or even principally, to the
past. On the contrary, the great
force of history comes from the fact
that we carry it within us, are
unconsciously controlled by it in
many ways, and history is literally
present in all that we do. It could
scarcely be otherwise, since it is to
history that we owe our frames of
reference, our identities, and our
aspirations.”

-James Baldwin, “Unnameable

Objects, Unspeakable Crimes” (1966)

James Baldwin, New York, 1946

OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY 2
Photograph by Richard Avedon © The Avedon Foundation
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 Teaching in this moment, in this world
• Overwhelmed and anxious, but hungry to listen, learn, and make
change

Dr. Katherine Hubler OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY 3

hublerk@oregonstate.edu
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 Additional Student Needs & Challenges to
Connection during COVID-19
• Online fully-asynchronous course
• Family and work disruptions
• Different learning environments
• Housing, food, medical care insecurity
• Isolation, stress, anxiety

• Remote synchronous / blended replacement for F2F course

• All of the above challenges +
• Synchronous attendance
• Web Camera Use

Dr. Katherine Hubler OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY 4

hublerk@oregonstate.edu
Information Classification: General
 Personally connect & reach out
• Instructors: Be candid about how the context of the pandemic and
this historical moment shapes your reality
• Keep a detailed course roster
• Reach out and respect student privacy at the same time
• Adopt flexible policies on attendance, late work, and camera use for
class meetings
• Include on syllabus and course site additional university or
community resources for students

Dr. Katherine Hubler OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY 5

hublerk@oregonstate.edu
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 Teaching in this moment, in this world:
Meaningful & relevant assignments
• Historically contextualize
contemporary issues 1. Oral History Collection &
Analysis
• Examine meaningful events and
traditions 2. Public History Engagement &
Outreach
• Invite diverse perspectives
3. Historical Monument Design
• Work shared with classmates & Peer Visits
• Encourage productive dialogue
between students
• Multi-tiered, capstone
assignments
Dr. Katherine Hubler OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY 6
hublerk@oregonstate.edu
Information Classification: General
 Oral Histories & Analysis
1. Informal* interviews of a family
or community member about
experiences and memories of Sample Historical Events
relatively recent historical event • The Cold War
• Same base of interview questions + • Anticolonial & Decolonization
additional student-created questions
Movements
2. Collect and publish interview
transcriptions (subjects identified • 9/11 Terrorist Attack and “War on
by initials only) within course Terror”
LMS • The Anti-apartheid Movement
3. Comparative analysis of oral
histories and written reflection

Dr. Katherine Hubler OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY 7

hublerk@oregonstate.edu
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 Oral Histories & Analysis
• Encourages connection of students with family & community
members, connection of students with one another
• Recognition of global, interconnected, and multifaceted impacts of
late 20th/early 21st century events
• Critical analysis of the advantages and disadvantages of consulting
oral histories and historical memory

Featured above is a short excerpt from an anonymized oral history collected by a student
in HST 103.
Dr. Katherine Hubler OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY 8
hublerk@oregonstate.edu
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 Public History Engagement & Outreach
• Historical Awareness Surveys of
peers
• Survey results shared with class
via LMS
• Identify--and interrogate reasons
for--gaps in awareness about
historical events
• Digital Projects for general
audiences to commemorate or
educate about the Holocaust
and other atrocities
Example of a student’s digital project produced in HC 407.
Published with student’s permission.
Dr. Katherine Hubler OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY 9
hublerk@oregonstate.edu
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 Historical Monument Project
Historical awareness &
“Monument literacy”
1. Examine, contextualize, and
analyze existing historical
monuments
2. Students select significant
historical moment, event,
person to commemorate and
plan designs for monument
3. Research primary sources and
compose “visitor pamphlet”
• Statement of monument’s
purpose & significance

Instructor-created sample historical monument design provided

for students in HST 102
Dr. Katherine Hubler OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY 10
hublerk@oregonstate.edu
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 Historical Monument Visits
• Design schematic and “visitor
pamphlets” shared with class via
LMS discussion board
• Classmates visit and provide
feedback on monument and
pamphlets
• RESULTS
• Highlighting of marginalized events
and stories

Instructor-created sample historical monument design provided

for students in HST 102
Dr. Katherine Hubler OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY 11
hublerk@oregonstate.edu
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