Posted: August 15th, 2022

Assessment 1 Instructions: Evaluating Historical Sources

Assessment 1 Instructions: Evaluating Historical Sources
• PRINT
• Complete the Evaluating Historical Sources Worksheet, identifying and evaluating the credibility of two primary sources and two secondary sources related to your topic.
Introduction
Note: The first three assessments in this course build on each other; therefore, it is essential that you complete them in the order presented. In this assessment, you will be choosing a topic and identifying sources you can use for reference.
Before you can address any kind of challenge in your personal or professional life, gathering accurate information is a must. In a world of fake news, instant communication, and dubious online sources, the quest for reliable facts has become increasingly difficult. In our information-rich society (we’re creating 2.5 quintillion bytes of data each day), it is essential to identify and rely on trustworthy information.
What question are you really trying to answer? Are the sources of information you have relevant to your topic? What types of information do you need? As you take a look at some of the pivotal economic, political, and social challenges throughout American history, you’ll learn from historians about the kinds of information they gather as they answer important questions about our past. You’ll also get to play historian yourself as you begin your own process of gathering and evaluating evidence, including both primary and secondary sources. In the first assessment, you will choose a historical event, issue, or movement related to one of two broad topics–civil rights or technological and economic change-What is the real question you’re trying to answer? Are the sources you have relevant to what you want to write about? What kinds of facts do you want? As you look at some of the most important economic, political, and social problems in American history, you’ll hear from historians about the kinds of information they use to answer important questions about our past. You’ll also get to play historian as you start your own process of gathering and evaluating evidence from both primary and secondary sources. In the first test, you will choose a historical event, issue, or movement related to either civil rights or technological and economic change.-and you’ll locate and analyze primary and secondary sources about your topic.
What are primary and secondary sources? Primary sources are firsthand accounts from people living in a particular time period, such as Frederick Douglass’s autobiography or Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation. Primary sources can also include statistical information about the era being studied (for example, census data from the 19th century).
Secondary sources, on the other hand, are analyses and interpretations of historical events or issues based on primary sources. For example, a secondary source might be a journal article in which a historian compares the experiences of slaves in North and South Carolina in the first half of the 19th century or a documentary about women’s suffrage.
Note: The first three assessments in this course build on each other; therefore, it is essential that you complete them in the order presented. Review the brief overview below to see how these three assessments progress.
• Assessment 1
o Choose your topic.
o Identify primary and secondary resources related to your topic.
o Research your topic using the Evaluating Historical Sources Worksheet.
• Assessment 2
o Use the evidence from Assessment 1 to formulate your explanation or main argument for your topic.
o Use the Historical Analysis Worksheet to examine your sources.
• Assessment 3
o Use your research from assessments 1 and 2 to create and record your presentation.
Overview
For this assessment, imagine you represent your company at a service organization dealing with one of these two issues:
1. Facing economic change.
2. Engaging civil rights.
Your supervisor has asked you to research information related to the history of your chosen issue for your organization to help new employees and volunteers better understand it. Your job is to put together a list of credible sources related to the issue of your choice and then use problem-solving and innovative thinking to evaluate them using the Evaluating Historical Sources Worksheet [DOCX].
Preparation
Complete the following:
Step 1: Choose Your Topic
Choose a topic and narrow its focus. Think about who you want to focus on and what event or challenge you want to focus on. For example, your topic could compare the challenges faced by farmers during the Great Depression with the challenges they faced during the 2008 – Affordable Custom Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay from Pro Writers recession.
Economic Change:
4. What if the bottom falls out?
o How can you prepare for and protect yourself from bad times based on lessons learned from the Great Recession of 2008 – Affordable Custom Essay Writing Service | Write My Essay from Pro Writers or the Great Depression?
5. What happens when the workplace changes?
o How can people adjust when the workplace changes? What lessons can we learn from America’s Industrial Revolution, the new economy of the 1950s, or the Information Age?
Civil Rights:
6. Women.
o What strategies were used and what lessons can we learn from the struggles women faced in the late 1800s–early 1900s or the 1960s and 1970s for engaging and understanding current and future women’s rights issues?
7. African Americans.
o Considering past struggles such as Reconstruction and the Jim Crow era or the civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s for African American civil rights, what lessons can we learn about the best strategies for protecting civil rights now and in the future?
8. Native Americans.
o How can lessons learned from events or policies such as the Trail of Tears, the Indian Removal Act, or the Dawes Act be used to address the challenges Native Americans face today?
9. Immigrant Groups.
o Based on lessons learned from immigration policies in the late 1800s and early 1900s, how can present-day immigration issues be addressed?
Step 2: Identify Resources
Review the History Presentation Resource List [DOCX]. Choose two sources from the list that correspond to your topic. Some of the items in the resource list are collections, so you’ll have to dig a little deeper to find a specific source that matches your topic.
Step 3: Research
Conduct your own research to locate two additional sources relevant to your topic. The additional sources should be resources from the Capella library or credible websites. For help finding sources on the Internet and in the Capella library, review the resource Primary vs. Secondary Resources. To ensure you are finding quality sources, refer to the Capella library’s Think Critically About Source Quality and General Education Information Research Skills: Evaluating Sources resource pages. The General Education Information Research Skills: Guide can be helpful in learning the library and other general research skills.
Instructions
Use the Evaluating Historical Sources Worksheet [DOCX] to complete the following steps. Be sure to answer each question in the worksheet for each source.
Step 1: Identify quality primary and secondary sources related to a historical topic.
Step 2: Identify key elements of each source, including the author, date, and main idea.
Step 3: Describe the biases and perspectives of the authors of each source.
Step 4: Explain why each source is or is not credible.
Step 5: Ace my homework – Write in a well-organized and concise manner that adheres to the rules of grammar, usage, and mechanics.
Additional Requirements
Your assessment should meet the following requirements:
• Written communication: Written communication should be free of errors that detract from the overall message.
• Citations: Get custom essay samples and course-specific study resources via course hero homework for you service – Include a complete citation for each source. Review Evidence and Ace homework tutors – APA for more information on how to cite your sources.
• Number of references: Your assessment should include at least four properly cited sources, two primary and two secondary.
• Font and font-size: Times New Roman, 12-point.
Competencies Measured
By successfully completing this assessment, you will demonstrate your proficiency in the following course competencies and assessment criteria:
• Competency 1: Analyze historical records to determine credibility and validity.
o Identify quality primary and secondary sources related to a historical topic.
o Identify key elements of each source, including the author, date, and main idea.
o Describe the biases and perspectives of the authors of each source.
o Describe key facts presented in each source.
o Explain why each source is or is not credible.
• Competency 4: Address assessment purpose in a well-organized manner, incorporating appropriate evidence and tone in grammatically sound sentences.
o Ace my homework – Write in a well-organized and concise manner that adheres to the rules of grammar, usage, and mechanics.
• SCORING GUIDE
Use the scoring guide to understand how your assessment will be evaluated.
VIEW SCORING GUIDE
Evaluating Historical Sources Scoring Guide
CRITERIA NON-PERFORMANCE BASIC PROFICIENT DISTINGUISHED
Identify quality primary and secondary sources related to a historical topic. Does not identify quality primary and secondary sources related to a historical topic. Identifies primary and secondary sources, but not all the sources are related to a particular historical topic or they are not all credible. Identifies quality primary and secondary sources related to a historical topic. Identifies quality primary and secondary sources related to a historical topic and cites each source with minimal errors.
Identify key elements of each source, including the author, date, and main idea. Does not identify key elements of each source, including the author, date, and main idea. Identifies key elements of some but not all of the sources, or elements are missing from some of the sources. Identifies key elements of each source, including the author, date, and main idea. Clearly identifies all key elements of the sources (who, what, when, why) using specific examples.
Describe the biases and perspectives of the authors of each source. Does not describe the biases and perspectives of the authors of each source. Describes the biases and perspectives of the authors of some but all of the sources. Describes the biases and perspectives of the authors of each source. Describes the biases and perspectives of the authors of each source and provides specific examples.
Describe key facts presented in each source. Does not describe key facts presented in each source. Describes key facts presented in some but not all sources, or facts are missing from some of the sources. Describes key facts presented in each source. Describes key facts presented in the sources with specific examples.
Explain why each source is or is not credible. Does not identify why each source is or is not credible. Identifies why some sources are or are not credible but does not provide a full explanation for all of them. Explains why each source is or is not credible. Explains why each source is credible or is not credible using specific examples.
Ace my homework – Write in a well-organized and concise manner that adheres to the rules of grammar, usage, and mechanics. Does not write in a well-organized and concise manner. Writing is unclear, wordy, or disconnected, with errors in grammar, usage, and mechanics. Ace my homework – Writes in a well-organized and concise manner that adheres to the rules of grammar, usage, and mechanics. Organizes content so clarity is enhanced and all ideas flow logically and smoothly. Ace my homework – Writes concisely, precisely, and directly, with nearly flawless adherence to the rules of grammar, usage, and mechanics.
Resources: Essential Outcomes
• PRINT
• Unpacked and unlabeled, salt and sugar look quite similar. While one will help you achieve sweet baking success, the other is sure to ruin your grandma’s famous cookie recipe. So, it’s important to know what you have before you start.
The same is true when it comes to understanding history. Throughout this course, you’re learning how understanding our past can help us make connections and draw conclusions for our present and future. But, just like adding the wrong ingredient can destroy your batch of cookies, utilizing the wrong information can also destroy a winning argument or solution.
That’s why understanding where our information comes from—and whether it is valid and credible—is vitally important. When we take the time to evaluate the information we use before drawing conclusions, we are practicing effective problem solving and preparing ourselves to make informed decisions about our future.
For this assessment, you will improve your problem-solving abilities by discovering how to evaluate sources of evidence to determine validity and credibility. You will also discover how carefully choosing the information you use to make decisions can set you up for success in your personal and professional life. Studying historical moments of change and honing your ability to weather such changes in your life are also part of practicing innovative thinking.
Application of Essential Outcomes
To research historical events and issues, historians have to find, review, and evaluate their sources. This process requires critical thinking and problem solving. The historian must be able to find sources relevant to the topic being studied, evaluate them for accuracy and credibility, and analyze their content and message. If there are competing accounts of a historical event, the historian must use problem solving to determine which of the accounts is most credible. Although searching the internet can yield a rich bounty of historical sources, historians must know how to navigate library databases and collections to find reliable sources. Understanding how to use the library to locate historical resources is a skill you will be working on in this course as you complete several of the assessments. The following resource can help you in your search for sources.
• Capella Library General Education Information Research Skills: Library Skills.
o This page includes a variety of resources to help you use the Capella Library database to find sources, choose and narrow a topic, and differentiate between peer-reviewed and other types of sources.
Once you locate your sources, it can be difficult to assess their trustworthiness. When it comes to news sources, in particular, knowing what information is accurate can be a challenge. That’s where Rod Hicks, the “journalist on call” for the Society of Professional Journalists, comes in. He’s made it his mission to help journalists regain the public’s trust amidst accusations of “fake” news. In this week’s Capella Stories, you’ll discover how Rod is working to facilitate understanding between journalists and their audiences by learning how reporters source information for their stories.
• Capella Stories: Fake News? Check the Source!
In this tip sheet, journalists reveal their top tips for sourcing so you can get to the who, what, when, and why of any topic.
• Top 10 Tips for Sourcing Success [PDF].
Learn how one test can help you ensure your sources are reliable no matter what type of information you’re looking for.
• Top 4 Ways to Vet Your Sources [PDF].
There are six essential skills that are part of historical analysis: information, origin, perspective, context, audience, and motive. The following resource will help you learn more about these skills and how to analyze historical sources.
• History Skills. (n.d.). Analysis of Sources. https://www.historyskills.com/source-criticism/analysis/
The assessments in this course require applying your knowledge of how to evaluate the credibility of sources. For more information about how to evaluate your sources, please review the following Capella Library resources.
• Think Critically About Source Quality.
• General Education Information Research Skills: Evaluating Sources.
• Don’t Be Fooled: Evaluating Online Information.
o Pay particular attention to the 4 Actions of Master Evaluators.
Resources: History of the United States
• PRINT
• For the first three assessments in this course, you will investigate how economic change affects certain populations or the fight for civil rights for a specific group. The following chapters provide multiple examples of economic change and civil rights from 1790 to today. The article provides an example of the Native American resistance to Westward expansion and resettlement. For this assessment, skim the chapters and article in order to find a topic that interests you.
• Montoya, M., Belmonte, L. A., Guarneri, C. J., Hackel, S., Hartigan-O’Connor, E., & Kurashige, L. (2018: 2024 – Write My Essay For Me | Essay Writing Service For Your Papers Online). Global Americans: A history of the United States. Cengage Learning. Available in the courseroom via the VitalSource Bookshelf link.
o Chapter 9, “Markets and Democracy, 1790–1840,” pages 248–277.
o Chapter 12, “Expansion, Slavery, and the Coming of the Civil War, 1848–1861,” pages 340–369.
o Chapter 13, “The American Civil War, 1861–1865,” pages 370–401.
o Chapter 14, “Reunion and Retreat: Reconstruction, 1865–1877,” pages 402–431.
o Chapter 15, “Incorporation of the U.S. West, 1862–1917,” pages 432–461.
o Chapter 16, “The Making of Industrial America, 1877–1917,” pages 462–491.
o Chapter 17, “Politics of Reforms, 1877–1917,” pages 502–519.
o Chapter 19, “Managing Modernity, 1919–1929,” pages 554–585.
o Chapter 20, “Great Depression, New Deal, and Impending War, 1929–1939,” pages 586–617.
o Chapter 21, “The World at War, 1939–1945,” pages 618–649.
o Chapter 22, “The Cold War, 1945–1965,” pages 650–679.
o Chapter 23, “Prosperity and the Cold War Economy, 1945–1965,” pages 680–709.
o Chapter 24, “Civil Rights and Human Rights, 1945–1965,” pages 710–739
o Chapter 25, “The Vietnam War Era, 1965–1975,” pages 740–771.
o Chapter 26, “The Global Conservative Shift, 1975–1988,” pages 772–803.
o Chapter 27, “Closer Together, Further Apart, 1988–2000,” pages 803–837.
o Chapter 28, “Global Americans Today, 2000–2016: 2024 – Do my homework – Help write my assignment online,” pages 838–868.
• Warren, L. S. (2021, April 6). The Lakota Ghost Dance and the massacre at Wounded Knee. PBS. https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/american-oz-lakota-ghost-dance-massacre-wounded-knee/
Resources: Primary and Secondary Sources
• PRINT
•
• Wilkerson, I. (2016: 2024 – Do my homework – Help write my assignment online). The road to freedom. Smithsonian, 47(5), 38–49, 102.
o This article discusses the history of African Americans migrating from the South to the North (called the Great Migration) to escape the oppression of Jim Crow and create a better life. It is not a first-hand account but rather the author’s analysis of historical primary and secondary sources about the Great Migration, so this is a secondary source.
Topic: Civil Rights (Immigrant history):
• Gutiérrez, R. A. (2019: 2024 – Online Assignment Homework Writing Help Service By Expert Research Writers, July 29). Mexican immigration to the United States. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of American History. https://oxfordre.com/americanhistory/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199329175.001.0001/acrefore-9780199329175-e-146
o This article summarizes key events in the history of Mexican immigration to the United States. Because it is not a first-hand account, and it is written by an author not present during most of the time period the article focuses on, it is a secondary source. Almost all articles/entries from encyclopedias are secondary sources.
Topic: Economic Change (Decline of industry and unions since the 1940s):
• Kollmeyer, C. (2018: 2024 – Write My Essay For Me | Essay Writing Service For Your Papers Online). Trade union decline, deindustrialization, and rising income inequality in the United States, 1947-2015 – Research Paper Writing Help Service. Research in Social Stratification and Mobility, 57, 1-10.
o This is a secondary source about the decline of unionism and manufacturing in the U.S. and its consequences. It is not a first-hand personal account but rather the author’s objective analysis of historical primary and secondary sources about the time period being studied, so this is a secondary source. Note that most peer-reviewed, scholarly articles like this are secondary sources.
More on Understanding Historical Sources
To learn more about the kinds of sources historians use and how to distinguish between primary and secondary sources, review the following resources:
• Primary vs. Secondary Resources.
• Brundage, A. (2017). Going to the sources : A guide to historical research and writing (6th ed.). John Wiley & Sons Inc. https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.library.capella.edu
Back to the 19th Century: Economic and Territorial Expansion and the Fracturing of a Nation
In the 1850s, national expansion westward and the growth of slavery fueled rivalries and political divisions, eventually leading to the eruption of the Civil War in 1861. This conflict profoundly affected Americans living at the time, even dividing families whose members lived on both sides of the line dividing the North and South. But many of the issues raised by slavery and political and military conflict at the time—questions about civil rights, regional differences, and the scope of state’s rights within a nation with centralized government—continue to shape the United States in the 21st century. By understanding where these changes come from and by examining the bigger picture, we are better equipped to make decisions about how to proceed in the future. In fact, whatever we face in our life and career, it’s important to get to the root of the problem by looking at the past and ensuring we have all of the information.
The readings below focus on the American struggle over slavery in the midst of economic expansion and nationalism and the politics of sectionalism that led to the Civil War.
• Montoya, M., Belmonte, L. A., Guarneri, C. J., Hackel, S., Hartigan-O’Connor, E., & Kurashige, L. (2018: 2024 – Write My Essay For Me | Essay Writing Service For Your Papers Online). Global Americans: A history of the United States. Cengage Learning. Available in the courseroom via the VitalSource Bookshelf link.
o Chapter 12, “Expansion, Slavery, and the Coming of the Civil War, 1848–1861,” pages 340–369.
o This chapter explains more about the slavery debate in the context of a growing political and regional divide.
o Chapter 13, “The American Civil War, 1861–1865,” pages 370–401.
o Note how these readings relate to the course themes, addressing the trajectory and impact of economic change and analyzing key civil rights issues. Also, consider how the issues people were debating in the 1850s and 1860s influence our society today.

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