Overview of Unit 2 Project for UNIV 111 with Dr. Marx

1. Focused Inquiry
Dr. Marx

2.  We will transition to a different mode of
critical thinking as we move into this unit.
 We will consider the nature and value of
sources of evidence in various forms,
including:
 Perception
 Memory
 Texts
 Rigorous research

3.  You’ll consider evidence in the course of an
investigation into a particular historical event.
 This event could be major or minor, recent or in
the distant past.
 This event should have a disputed official
account.
 There should be a prevailing story that explains the event
 There should be an alternative account of what happened.
 Both accounts can’t be correct
 Yet, each account has significant evidence to support it.

4.  To gather, study, and evaluate evidence for
competing accounts
 To compare and evaluate different texts that
support competing accounts

5.  You’ll join groups and find a suitable topic for your
group to pursue (not necessarily in that order)
 Before that, post suggestions to a Blackboard
discussion forum.
 A few pointers:
 Your topic should be a disputed event, not a disputed
moral or political issue
 It should be characterized as an event (typically, with a
beginning and an end), rather than a phenomenon or
place
 There should be considerable textual evidence on both
sides of the dispute