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Library
The staff at Belk Library are ready to help you with any and all research needs. Beyond providing the History Department with a full-time support specialist, Belk Library provides staff for instructional technology, archivists, and special collections experts.
- Belk Library Information Literacy Librarian for the History Dept. – Breanne Crumpton
- History Databases
Of course, library these days is not limited to the on-campus physical building. Interlibary Loan is an amazing tool to secure research sources from across the U.S.; World Cat, Google Scholar, and even Amazon are powerful tools for research, and databases are great for finding journal articles, books, reviews, and more … way beyond JSTOR!
Digital Tools
The “digital shift” of the last two decades has raised interesting possibilities and questions about how we can research, write, learn, and teach about history. Today, historians reach audiences in multiple ways that use some form of technology (websites, digitized collections, e-books & journals, social media, online courses, and webinars, and more).
Whether your career path involves education, curriculum development, museum studies, government or NGO work, or other sectors, you will deal with two basic questions: “How can audiences engage with the past online?”, and “How can historians make the best use of digital tools and new media?”
For a comprehensive list of digital resources for historians, check out the AHA webpage for getting started with digital history.
There are many websites out there that curate a collection of digital tools and resources for historians. Although many tools (and links) wind up “dead,” it’s useful to become familiar with a few, such as this one from the University of Washington, another from Sam Houston State University, and yet another from the University of Arizona. You can also find enthusiasts’ sites that compile digital history tools and resources from around the world, such as Awesome Digital History, and a comprehensive personal website from historian Jeff McClurken (check out his ongoing compilation of digital tools and papers presented at history conferences and workshops).
For those interested in teaching 9-12 social studies, an oldie (but goodie) is the website Teachinghistory.org and its section devoted to the Digital Classroom. Here, you will find teaching strategies and over 70 reviews for digital tools under Tech For Teachers, which include steps on how to get started and examples of history lessons.
Professionalism
As a senior, it’s time (maybe well past time) to begin thinking about your identity as a historian. Regardless of whether your future plans include graduate studies, teaching, public and applied history positions, or a job in the public or private sector, your training at App State includes the skills of a historian. However, did your studies also include the code of ethics and professionalism in the field of history? and
The American Historical Association lists its Statement on Standards of Professional Conduct on its website. [.pdf] Included in this statement is a brief overview of the profession of history, shared values among historians, what constitutes historical scholarship, plagiarism, the teaching of history, and other topics. Please take time to review this statement, especially those sections related to the Shared Values of Historians, Scholarship, and Plagiarism. You can also read the Organization of American Historians page on professional integrity.
Why join a professional association?
Historians benefit from networking with peers. Historical associations exist at almost every level—from state, regional, and national associations, and often focused on areas of study (i.e. sport history, U.S. South, digital history, women’s history, and so on). These associations can provide information about job availability and reports on the most recent developments in the profession. They also publish newsletters and journals with articles featuring the most recent scholarship. Annual conference meetings are a great place to meet others working in the same or related fields, hear presentations on new scholarly work, engage in discussions about the work of others, and simply network with other historians.
For more on career tracks in history, see the Careers for Students of History page on the AHA website.
