First Piece of the Puzzle

For my final project, I would like to continue with the same theme and general topic I used in the final projects I created for the two previous certificate courses, and create a project about the Carpatho-Rusyn people. Specifically, I was thinking about creating a project that examined the religious conflict that occurred between the Greek Catholic Carpatho-Rusyns and the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The project would focus on the fact that despite the fact that they were members of the Catholic Church, the Carpatho-Rusyns had religious practices that were closer to those of the Eastern Orthodox Church than the Roman Catholic Church, and that when the Carpatho-Rusyns began immigrating to the United States in the 1880s these unique religious practices would cause conflict with the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States. In creating the project, I am looking to examine the conflict from the perspective of both the Roman Catholic hierarchy and the Carpatho-Rusyn people.

In creating this project, I plan on using primary sources created by both the leaders of Roman Catholic Church in the United States and the Greek Catholic Carpatho-Rusyn priests living in the United States. I will use the letters written by both groups where they describe their side of the conflict and what they view the problem as. In addition, I will also use various newspaper article and the records of court cases to provide a different view on the conflict between the Roman Catholic Church and the Greek Catholic Carpatho-Rusyn immigrants in the United States.

This project is intended for individuals that are interested in topics such as, religious conflicts in the United States, the experience of European immigrants in the United States, and the establishment of the Greek Catholic Church in the United States. The audience will engage with the project by being able to view and examine primary sources from both sides of this religious conflict and will be able to analyze the arguments that both the Roman Catholic hierarchy and the Greek Catholic Carpatho-Rusyn immigrants presented in their appeals to the Vatican for support.

Historical Thinking

Historical thinking is the process that historians use when constructing narratives of the past. This process involves a close examination of primary source documents and other historical evidence to create a historical narrative that is as accurate as possible. Historical thinking is about more than just what historians now to be historical facts and truths, but also how they know these facts to be true. To be able to think historically, the historian needs to be able to put themself in the place of the historical actor/actors they are researching. This involves setting aside modern biases and assumptions and for the historian to be able to understand the context and the mindset of historical figures. For professional historians, the process of historical thinking is something that comes natural to them. Professional historians have been trained to look at and examine historical events using historical thinking.

However, as Sam Wineburg points out, historical thinking is not a natural process for human beings. When studying historical events and figures, we tend to examine them through our own perceptions and understandings of the world we live in. This is problematic because historical figures often did not possess the same views and perceptions as people living today in the year 2021 do. To gain a true understanding of history and historical events we need to move beyond our own perceptions to put ourselves in the shoes of historical actors. This process is something that does not come naturally and needs to be taught. Historical thinking is a skill that can be taught to students in history classes at both the high school and college level through different methods of teaching besides the typical lecture. The video “What is Historical Thinking” provides five important aspects of historical thinking that can be taught to students in the classroom. These five aspects are examining multiple accounts and perspectives of a historical event, analyzing primary sources, looking at the creation of particular sources, understanding the historical context behind the creations of sources, and creating historical claims based on the evidence provided in primary sources. Teaching these five aspects in a history classroom can help students to be able to think historically.

Three questions that I have about teaching history are:

  1. How do you engage an audience that consists of people from different age groups and knowledge levels in the same historical presentation?
  2. How do you encourage someone in the setting of a museum or a historical site to engage in historical thinking?
  3. How do you get a member of the general public to set aside their modern perceptions in order to place themself in the position of a historical figure?

The best way to engage a public audience is to provide them with a variety of primary sources that contain a variety of different perspectives on a historical event and to help the audience be able to understand what the sources reveal based on the historical context they were created in.

Introduction-HIST 689

My name is Andrew Hutsko (you can call me Drew) and I am excited to be a student in HIST 689 Teaching and Learning History in the Digital Age this semester. I am taking this course as part of the masters program. I am pursuing a Master of Arts in Applied History with New Media and Information Technology Emphasis and a specialization in the United States. In addition, I am also pursuing the graduate certificate in Digital Public Humanities. I already have a Bachelor of Arts in History and a Minor in Political Science from American University, that I received in May 2019.

I mostly interested in United States and European history, with my main research interest being European immigration to the United States in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. In both HIST 680 and 694 my final projects focused on one particular Eastern European ethnic group, the Carpatho-Rusyns, that came to the United States in large numbers between 1880 and 1920. My final project in HIST 680 involved mapping the historic Carpatho-Rusyn villages in what is today Eastern Slovakia. For my final project in HIST 694, I created an online digital exhibit that told the story of the immigration and Americanization process of the Carpatho-Rusyn people during the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The Carpatho-Rusyns is a topic that I am deeply interested in and have personal connections, as I am the descendent of Carpatho-Rusyn immigrants who came to the United States in 1883 and 1910. I hope that this class will allow me to present my personal research interests to a larger public audience in new ways.

By taking HIST 689, I would like to gain new skills and knowledge about how people learn history and what are the most effective ways to teach history to a variety of different audiences. I am interested in pursuing a future career that  involves educating the public about the past in the setting of either a museum or a historical site. I have always enjoyed sharing historical knowledge and information with other, and my goal with taking this class is to be able to more effectively engage a public audience with history.

 

The Process of Digital Public History

Taking Digital Public History this past semester has given me a lot of valuable knowledge and insight that I will use in my future career and the historical work that I will create. Overall, I have learned what it means to create history for the public and how this can be done in a digital format. The modules for this class allowed me to understand how to create works of public history, the importance of understanding the audience of any public history project, and how digital tools can be used to engage the general public with a historical topic.

The  material covered in this class, gave me an insight into an area of history that I previously did not have experience working in. Creating works of digital public history is different than other historical works that I have previously produced for other classes. Most of the historical works I produced before taking this class, were meant to be viewed by either my fellow students or the professor teaching the class. My previous historical works were produced for an academic audience who usually had a similar amount of knowledge and experience with the topic my project was on as I did.

In taking this class and completing my digital public history project, I was for the first time producing a historical work that was meant for the general public to engage with. Developing a project that was meant for a non academic audience made me stop to consider who this project would appeal to and how could I design the project to appeal to my target audience. I found that creating personas helped me to understand who the target audience of my project was and how I could best design my project to engage with this group.

One of the major lessons I learned from developing my digital public history project over the course of the semester, is that as much as the content and design of any digital public history project is based on the interest of the project’s creator, the interests of the intended audience must also be taken into account. In certain cases, the interests of the project’s intended audience can actually have a major effect on the content of the project and can change the overall focus of the final project.

This was certainly the case with my digital public history project. The original idea and focus of my project ended up being different from the final project I produced. Originally my project was going to be titled: An Immigrant Experience: The Evolution of the Byzantine Catholic Church in the United States, and would focus on establishment and evolution of the Greek (later Byzantine) Catholic Church in the United States by the Carpatho-Rusyn people. In my original project, the focus was more on the Greek (Byzantine) Catholic Church and its development in the United States rather than the story of the Carpatho-Rusyn people.

Through the feedback I received and reviewing what would most appeal to the target audience of my project, I can to the realization that the most compelling part of my project was the immigrant story of one specific ethnic group the Carpatho-Rusyns. I changed the title of my project to: An Immigrant Experience: The Carpatho-Rusyns and their Church in the United States, to emphasize that the focus would be on the story of the immigration and Americanization of the Carpatho-Rusyn people and how this was unique from all other immigrant groups because of their Eastern Rite Greek Catholic faith. Taking the interests of my target audience into consideration helped me to create a project that has more wide ranging appeal than could be found in the original focus of my digital public history project.

Digital History Project Argument

In my digital history project, I am telling the story of the unique immigrant experience, and Americanization process of the Carpatho-Rusyn people. My project starts in the 1880s, when the Carpatho-Rusyns first began to immigrate to the United States in large numbers, and ends in the present day, looking at the Rusyn-American community today. Throughout my project, I argue that the Americanization process of the Carpatho-Rusyn people was different than other Slavic immigrants groups due to their unique Eastern Rite Greek Catholic faith. This was different than other Slavic immigrant groups like the Polish and Slovaks, who were Roman Catholic and there for had at least some common ground with previous immigrant groups like the Irish and Germans.

I further argue that the Americanization process of the Carpatho-Rusyns must be understood through the establishment and development of the Greek (later Byzantine) Catholic Church. The church was a major influence in the lives of the Carpatho-Rusyn people and throughout the twentieth century, continued to provide a sense of their heritage and ethnic identity. The changes and developments in the Greek (later Byzantine) Catholic Church over the late nineteenth and twentieth centuries, parallel the Americanization process undergone by the Carpatho-Rusyn people at the same time. Throughout my project, I emphasize how these must be looked at together.

When planning my project, I decided that a digital exhibit was the best way to present the information contained in my project. I felt that the best way to tell the story of the immigrant experience and Americanization process of the Carpatho-Rusyn people was to divide the story up into smaller sections that focused on a one period of time and one specific aspect of the story. Creating a digital exhibit allowed me to present the information in a chronological way where I could include both descriptive text and images to emphasize and reinforce the main argument of my project.

I will evaluate my work and the success of my project based on two different criteria. These criteria are the number of visitors to my digital exhibit and the nature of the feedback these visitors leave about my project. My goal is to average around 10-15 people viewing my digital exhibit a month and out of those visitors I would like to receive at least 3-4 positive comments on the content of my exhibit. I would consider my project to be a success if I am able to meet these two goals.

The Influence of Methods and Technologies on the Types of Digital Public History Works being Created

In the technology driven and digital world that we live in today, public historians are presenting their work in new and unique ways. No longer is public history just learned and experienced through a physical exhibit in a museum. Today, public historians are using new methods and technologies to create a variety of different digital public history works. These new digital public history works are designed to engage their audiences in way previously not possible.

The types of digital public history works being created by public historians are ultimately influenced by the methods and technologies of public history. One of the major ideas to keep in mind when creating any work of digital public history is that it is meant to be viewed by the general public. General public means that the intended audience is not made up of those in academia with a specialized knowledge of a certain historical topic. When dealing with this type of audience it is best to provide as much concise background details as possible. The project audience should not feel like they have no idea what the project is about or why it is important.

When navigating through a digital public history project, the audience should be given clear instructions on how to use the technology present in the project. In order for the project audience to fully engage with the content of the project they need to know exactly how to use the technology and also how to navigate through the project itself. Without these clear instructions, the audience may not be able to fully engage with the project like its creator intended them to.

The technology used in public history also plays a major role in the types of digital public history works that are being created today. These works have to adapt to the digital form in which they will be viewed by their intended audience. Creating public history projects digitally, allows the audience to have a different type of interaction then they would with something like a physical exhibit in a museum. The creators of digital public history project, can create a variety of different interactive experience that are only possible in the digital format. Creators can create experience that differ for each user interacting with the project. This level of creating different types of user interactions and experiences is something made possible by the technology used by public historians to create digital public history projects.

Digital History Project Progress Update 4

Since the last update on my project, I have completed writing the descriptive captions that will appear under each of the images and items that will be included in my final exhibit. Each of the 55 items that will be included in the project were given captions that explained what they were and their importance to the overall themes I am trying to highlight in my exhibit. It is through these captions that the viewer will gain much of the context of my project.

The biggest challenge that I am facing right now is in trying to convey all of the information I have about my topic into a concise format that someone visiting my exhibit can understand and follow. I know what I want the major themes of my project to be, but I am finding it challenging to take the information I know and condense it down so that it is not overwhelming to the viewer.

The next step I will take in completing my project is to write the main text for each of the 13 different sections of my project. This text will provide the context and explain the importance of the different sections of my exhibit. It is from this text that the viewer will pick up on the major themes that I am trying to convey with my project.

Digital History Project Progress Update 3

Since my last project update, I have begun to write some of the text that will be included and will provide the context for my project. I started with writing the descriptive captions for the images that will be featured in each section of my exhibit. These captions combined with the images and other items I am including will provide much of the context for each of the different sections that will make up my exhibit. In addition, I have also rearranged some of the items I am including in my exhibit so that they provide better context in the new sections I have included them in. Finally, I went through and reevaluated the order I am presenting the information in. I made sure that the information is being presented in a logical order that makes sense to my target audience.

The biggest challenge I am currently facing is in writing the captions for each of the items I am including in my exhibit. I find that it has been a bit of a challenge to put the information I am trying to convey with each item into words. I have found myself struggling at times to find the right words to capture the importance and relevance of each item to my overall project.

The next step in completing my project, will be to write the remaining captions for the rest of the items I will be including in my final exhibit. After I complete the descriptive captions for all of the items, I will then write the background text for each of the thirteen sections of the exhibit. This information will provide the context for each of the different sections that I will include in the final project.

Exploring your Landscape with Digital Public History: Images of Arlington County 1920

The mobile public history site that I tested was a project by the Arlington Historical Society called Images of Arlington County 1920. The project was created to mark the centenary of the renaming of the county in 2020. It features 119 images of buildings that would have existed in 1920 when Arlington County got its present name. As the project introduction states, “They are the sights those newly renamed Arlingtonians would see during, say, an early-morning walk, or a ride on a horse, car or trolley.”  In putting together this project, the Arlington Historical Society wanted to give users an idea of some of the sights that individuals living in Arlington County in 1920 would have seen.

The project consists of a map of Arlington County in 1920 with the location of the buildings in the 119 photographs marked. Each photo is given a number to represent its location on the map. The user is able to click on either the photo of the building or the number on the map to bring up more information about the location in the photo. I found the project to be exciting in that it was able to show what buildings existed in 1920 that are still here today and what buildings used to be found in certain locations.

I did find some limits to the format of this project as I was navigating through it. First, there was not much background information about the buildings that each photo depicted. Most of the photos just gave the name of the building, the date of the photo, and when it was built. This definitely a missed opportunity to provide much more in depth information about the history of Arlington County. I found myself wanting to know a lot more about the history of the buildings found in each photo.

The other major problem I found with the project was in the way that the map was done. When zoomed out, the map shows the major roads of Arlington County in 1920 with their current names in parenthesize. To see the modern street plan of Arlington County the user has to zoom in on the map and even when you zoom in none of the streets are labeled. Even as someone who lives in Arlington County, I found it difficult to determine the location of some of the photos without street names.

Overall, I found this project to be an interesting insight into the history of Arlington County and what the county looked like in 1920. However, I wish the project would have done a better job at providing more historical background on the buildings in the photos and provided a map that was easier to navigate.

Digital History Project Progress Update 2

In the last week, I have worked on reorganizing my project to focus more on the experience of Carpatho-Rusyn immigrants in the United States and the process of Americanization that they and their descendants experienced. I used the information I already had on the evolution of the Byzantine Catholic Church in the United States to highlight and emphasize the experience of the Carpatho-Rusyns in the United States. I changed the title and description of my project to put the emphasis upfront on the immigrant experience aspect of my project rather than the evolution of the Byzantine Catholic Church in the United States.

After deciding how I was going to incorporate more of the immigrant experience in my project, I went and found more sources and items to encapsulate the experience of Carpatho-Rusyn immigrants and their descendants in the United States. Once I located all of the items I wanted, I uploaded and created all of the metadata for the items on Omeka.

The biggest challenge I find myself facing right now is taking all of the ideas I have on paper for the design and layout of my exhibit and transferring them to Omeka. I have never created an online exhibit like this before, so the process of using Omeka is new to me. My biggest challenge in completing this project will be in getting my exhibit to look the way that I want it to and in a layout that is both aesthetically pleasing and easy to navigate through.

The next step in my project will be writing all of the text for the exhibit. In total there are sixteen different sections of my exhibit. Each section has the main background text that describes the theme of that section along with descriptive text for each of the items included in that section. I have created a word document where I will write all of the descriptive text for my project, that I will begin to work on next.

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