1. • Readings:
– Dissertation research
– Exam 1 Review
Week 9: Historical Method
Socratic Seminar
TOK Research Abstract

2. Where We are Going
• 5 minute prep for SS
– Get your notes in order
– Discuss main points of article,
your question.
– Decide who is speaking, what
in general you will say, how you
will make it interesting.
• Socratic Seminar (30 min. -?)
– 6 minute rounds
– 3 min. outside questioning
– 3 min. debrief and notes
• Discussion of writing
dissertation 1 (3/24)
• Notes on Unit Exam review
(3/20)

3. Socratic Seminar
• Have your article ready, both
to quote, and to summarize,
the main idea presented.
• Attempt to analyze the
following:
– What is the scope of the article?
Is it a description of an event, a
critique of competing views, or
something else?
– What is the argument of the
article? What propositions or
truth statements does it make?
– Evaluate the argument made in
the article. Are there any
counter-factuals considered? Is
the article too limited?
– What are future areas of
research concerning your
question, the articles content,
and/or its application for your
Extended Essay?

4. Identity, Change over Time, and
Borders
• Answering Question 1
from last week, I
discussed some of the
different approaches to
the idea that history is
written from particular
perspectives
• I focused on three
areas, discussed the
revised symbols, and
offered diverse ways of
thinking about the similar
issues
(borders, statistics, geneti
c variance, pre-modern
accounts)

5. Identity, Change over Time, and
Borders
• To what extent does the
subjective approach of
history reveal changing
perspectives over time
regarding humanity,
identity, and border
disputes?
– This is NOT the original
question, but a
dissertation question
that acts to clarify
towards my thesis
statement.
– I must take a position
as a result of this new
“research question”

6. Thesis:
History is the fabric of the past woven together
by the styles and capabilities of both
contemporaneous and future histiographers.
The concept of historical identity as it relates to
border disputes over time often reveal a
pragmatic theory of truth due to the continuing
effects of the dispute. When disputes are
resolved, or recede in time, coherence theory
of truth seems predominant in histiography;
particularly as it relates to the fields of ancient
scientific and historical knowing.

7. TOK Dissertation 1 (3/24)
• You will complete the following:
– Outline hand-out (condensed version of
the EE due 4/17)
– Write a 3 page abstract based on a POK
question combined with your EE topic.
– Loosely reference all 5 chapter topics
studied the last 8 weeks (Truth, Logic,
Argument, Ethics, History)
– Cite 3 peer-reviewed sources (MLA)

8. TOK Research Sharing
• Go to ebscohost,
create a folder with
this format:
“EE.lastname.firstna
me.workingtitle”
• Share the folder
with me (use my
email)

9. TOK Unit Exam 1 (3/20)
• 20 short answer questions
from the 5 areas previously
discussed.
• Focus on studying the
following:
– Be able to use 10 specific
vocabulary terms, people, or
theories in each area.
– Previous week’s notes
focusing on an
understanding of the
general topic and the POK
presented in each chapter
– Forming Socratic Seminar
question worksheets