Memory & Identity
Following the discussions on Life & Customs, participants will spend a few weeks (Weeks 7-9: Monday, June 28, 2010 through Friday, July 16, 2010) devoted to discussions on memory and identity. These discussions will start with reflections on the required text, Wallace Stegner’s “History is a Pontoon Bridge.” From this point, each participant will select three options from the “suggested texts” to review. Each participant will post original and thoughtful reflections to the discussion board, as well as comment on the reflections of others.
· Stegner, Wallace. "History Is a Pontoon Bridge." In Wolf Willow. New York: Penguin Books, 2000.
· Kloberdanz, Timothy J. "'The Traditions We Share': Folklore in Four Cultures on the Northern Plains." North Dakota History Journal 65, no. 4 (1998): 19-31. (pdf, course reserves)
· Kloberdanz, Timothy J. "The Germans from Russia: A Viable Ethnic Group or Fading Phenomenon." Journal of the American Historical Society of Germans from Russia 27, no. 1 (2004): 14-26. (pdf, course reserves)
· Iseminger, Gordon L. "Are We Germans, or Russians, or Americans?: The Mcintosh County German-Russians During World War I." North Dakota History Journal 59, no. 2 (Spring 1992): 2-16. (pdf, course reserves)
· Visit an approved German-Russian landmark or cemetery in North Dakota or South Dakota
o For approval e-mail the instructor with the official name and location of the landmark or cemetery.
§ For suggestions e-mail the instructor, as well.
o Document the visit with photographs and/or video recordings.
§ Upload to Heimat.
· Review an oral history from the Dakota Memories Oral History Project (DMOHP).
o To review a list of all oral histories visit the DMOHP’s Orders. To order via phone, contact Acacia Stuckle at 701.231.6596.
· Review one of the documentaries from Prairie Public’s German-Russian series.
o
Prairie Crosses, Prairie Voices: Iron
Crosses of the Great Plains.
United States: Prairie Public Broadcasting, Inc., 1999. (DVD)
§
To order via phone, contact Acacia Stuckle at
701.231.6596.
s
Note: This documentary is on the required DVD
with Germans from Russia: Children of the
Steppe, Children of the Prairie.
Thus, participants may already own this DVD.
o
Schmeckfest. United States: Prairie
Public Broadcasting, Inc., 2005. (DVD)
§
To order via phone, contact Acacia Stuckle at
701.231.6596.
o
A Soulful Sound. United States: Prairie
Public Broadcasting, Inc., 2005. (DVD)
§ To order via phone, contact Acacia Stuckle at 701.231.6596.
1. Read/review the material.
2. Submit reflection posts to the discussion board.
§ Reflect/review material
§ Stimulate discussion with colleagues
§ Effectively communicate (i.e. clean prose)
4 posts (1 required text + 3 selected
texts) x 10 points = 40 pts
1. Discussion Posts
§ Stay current in the course
§ Engage in discussions with colleagues
§ Enrich the seminar experience
· Incorporate outside material
· Integrate optional resources
4 threads (required text + selected texts) x 5 pts = 20 pts
Total
Points: 60 pts