Module HIST46030: Museums, Heritage, Histories

Department: History

HIST46030: Museums, Heritage, Histories

Pre-requisites

Corequisites

Excluded Combinations

Aims

• To help students develop an understanding of how museums and the concept of heritage have developed from the 18th century to the present.
• To help students develop a deep engagement with the ways in which museums and heritage sites contribute to a sense of historical time and the creation of cultural and social identities.
• To consider how these phenomena map onto the histories of museum and heritage institutions in Durham and the Northeast, as well as farther afield.

Content

• This module will equip students with an understanding of the histories of museums and other institutions involved in collecting, conserving, displaying and interpreting the past. It introduces students to some of the key debates and methodologies in museum and heritage studies. Students will also develop a critical awareness of the role museums and heritage continue to play as mediators of public history and other forms of knowledge.
• Topics may include, but are not limited to, the following: histories of collecting, curating, and visiting practice; histories of heritage designation, conservation, and institutions; the impact of colonialism and imperialism on historical imaginations; decolonisation in museums and heritage.
• Different kinds of museums, heritage sites, and related activities provide the focus for fortnightly seminars, with examples drawn from a range of institutional and national contexts. Students will also have the opportunity to investigate the history of museums in Durham and the Northeast, and to weigh up how — and whether — museums today are using their own histories to address contemporary challenges.

Learning Outcomes

• To acquire a broad knowledge of the history of museums and heritage practices.
• To relate the growth of museums and heritage practices to concurrent social and geopolitical trends.
• To compare the public role envisioned for museums and heritage practices in the past and compare it to their impact today.
• To understand some of the theoretical literature in museum and heritage studies.

• To recognize and historicize the different kinds of museums and heritage practices that have developed, especially over the course of the 19th and 20th centuries.
• To synthesize theoretical literature in museum and heritage studies with historical research on specific museum and heritage practices.
• To analyse developments in the museum and heritage field in Britain, North America or continental Europe within a global context.
• To interrogate the link between museum and heritage histories and contemporary debates, such as intangible heritage, the return of contested objects, or the representation of different groups, identities, and historical themes.

• To acquire the confidence to undertake independent research in subjects covered by the module;
• To develop appropriate skills of analysis and interpretation for a range of primary and secondary sources covered by the module;
• To evaluate the implications of the different scholarly methodologies covered by the module.

Modes of Teaching, Learning and Assessment and how these contribute to the learning outcomes of the module

• Classes will be taught through a mix of short lectures, seminar discussions, and student presentations.

Teaching Methods and Learning Hours

Summative Assessment

Formative Assessment

20 minute oral presentation in Term 1 or 2.