HASS505, Trimester 3 (2023): Making Museums Digital
What does going to a museum mean if the visit is all online?
What can we learn from digital objects?
How do we tell stories about the past and present through digital means?
The Department of Archaeology, Classics and History is pleased to trial a new subject for Masters-level students in 2023 (Trimester 3). Making Museums Digital (offered under as HASS505), is especially suitable for students studying the Graduate Diploma of Local, Family and Applied History, the Master of History, or Master of Arts, but will be useful to any student interested in cultural heritage and digital humanities. UNE’s newly appointed Lecturer in Digital Innovation, Dr Alina Kozlovski, is a national expert in the application of digital methods to the study and presentation of material culture in public settings. In this unit she explores the effect digital technologies have had on how museums curate and catalogue their collections and how they make them interactive. Students will explore a variety of themes including authenticity, ethics, and activism, drawing on UNE’s own museum collections and others from around the world as well as case studies which feature natural history, archaeological, and fine art materials. The unit also offers a chance to curate your own online exhibition on a theme that is important to you.
For further information contact Dr Alina Kozlovski <alina.kozlovski@une.edu>
HINQ302: Researching the Past in the Digital Age
The digital age and the emergence of new tools has reshaped how we approach research in history, archaeology and cultural heritage. This Australian-first unit is important in developing your understanding of new approaches and technologies to support research about the past. Tools such as geographical information systems, paperless data collection, web scraping, digital illustration, image enhancement, restoration, analysis, modelling and content management systems are explored.
The unit also provides a cross-disciplinary introduction to research design and methodology, building niche skills to help you stand out in academia and professions across government, industry and community organisations. Other than being comfortable with using computers and an eagerness to learn new digital skills, there are no technical prerequisites. You will be supported by digital laboratory workshop sessions and discussion forums to maximise your learning.
Upon completion of this unit, students will be able to:
- illustrate a sound understanding of key concepts and principles relevant to designing a research project encompassing historical inquiry and cultural heritage;
- demonstrate awareness of the challenges and opportunities created by digital technologies in historical inquiry and cultural heritage;
- demonstrate broad knowledge of a range of digital research methods and a capacity to determine which approaches and tools are best suited to common types of historical research questions
- develop an ability to produce and work with a range of digital datasets, and to archive and curate these data in line with current best practice approaches to long-term preservation; and
- reflect on their own career pathways and identify opportunities for future professional development encompassing digital approaches, and in line with career goals.
HIST351/551: Convict Australia
This unit introduces you to one of the central issues of white settlement in Australia. It places transportation and convict life within the context of settlement as a whole, while at the same time examining the moral issues surrounding 19th-century crime and punishment. As such, it will help you to develop an advanced understanding of the way the system was managed, and the way convict men and women sought to make the most of their situation in Australia.
Upon completion of this unit, students will be able to:
- demonstrate a broad understanding of the convict origins of our society;
- demonstrate an understanding of human behaviour in an historically different context;
- demonstrate a well-developed understanding of historical methodology;
- demonstrate their capacity to independently utilise, evaluate and analyse appropriate sources of information; and
- write structured prose and frame coherent arguments in the accepted manner of the discipline.