Source criticism is a vital part of historians’ work, and it generally features in all historiography syllabuses. But how should historians approach the many digital sources that are now available to them online via countless servers – sources that often have no paper version and no precise archive location to help trace their origins and verify their authenticity?
It has become vital for historians to develop new critical methods that take into account the specific nature of these archives. With its focus on digital history, the C²DH has a major role to play in helping address these highly important methodological issues.
Stefania Scagliola is working on the development of a digital platform to host resources for teaching about digital source criticism, based on the general source criticism methods taught at universities. “We need to differentiate between born-digital sources and documents that started off in another form and have subsequently been digitised,” explains the researcher. The digitisation process differs depending on the type of source, which may vary greatly. Sources come in the form of texts, photos and audiovisual material and include not just websites but also emails and social media posts. Future developments will doubtless result in the emergence of yet more formats.
The platform is primarily geared towards undergraduate and postgraduate students. It has several levels: an animation that is accessible to all users and serves as a general introduction to the topic; lessons followed by exercises, some of which are relatively advanced; and a workshop for group work. The modular design also means that it can be easily adapted for upper secondary school pupils. “Teachers and lecturers will find all the information they need to produce their own lessons, without needing to stick rigidly to the structure suggested on the platform,” adds Stefania Scagliola.
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