Snapshot impressions #2 – second class of the Fall 2012 term

The next class presented somewhat more of a challenge. Not only was the class 45 students-large, the professor wanted her students to learn how to do historical research about the role of nutrition when treating diseases such as cancer or heart disease. My mind went immediately to the cover of a past Archivaria featuring medical archives. The cover shows a poster which claims that the staff are 100% tuberculosis free.

Tuberculosis—that was my hook. This archives does not have information about cancer or heart disease (to my knowledge), but records of the local Sanatorium are housed here. The problem was that the San records were unprocessed. I decided to take the risk and let the students use the records. Why? From my quick survey, there did not appear to be any original order that the students might destroy. I also felt that the students would not remove any records, which seemed to have no monetary value. Besides, the benefits of allowing the students to see the records were too great to pass up.

I divided the students into groups. Each group was given a box of unprocessed archival records and a selection of books received from the Sanatorium’s medical library. After setting the stage and advising on handling, I invited them to go through their box and books. I encouraged each group to discuss the contents while answering a number of pre-determined questions. This was meant to be more of a self-driven exercise, allowing time for the students to share their learned knowledge. Three of the five groups engaged in meaningful discussions.

To read about this exercise, visit my other blog at http://archivallessons.blogspot.ca/2012/10/100-tb-free.html.

Before and after the exercise, I read a few paragraphs from one honours thesis, published in 2007, and written by a History and Biology student. The purpose of these short readings was to demonstrate that historical research can bring together meaningful and (sometimes) untraditional disciplines.

Was the exercise successful? Yes. One student asked to make an appointment to review sources for another class assignment. One student asked about other archival sources in the country. But, perhaps the best gauge of success was in the answers to our exit question. Approximately one-third of the students answered the question in a way that demonstrated an understanding of historical relevance to their research. A few students related past treatment of tuberculosis to current treatments.