DIGITAL HISTORIANS: PERSPECTIVES AND APPROACHES IN RESEARCH AND TEACHING CLAUDIA FAVERO

A LITTLE BIT ABOUT ME Part time EdD (Doctorate in Education) online student at the Open University Historian by training (but from Political Science) Teaching online “Online Research Methodologies” to Undergraduate students at the University of Turin Mum Historia: so that the actions of people will not fade with time. Herodotus, Histories (ca 430 BC) Historia: so that the actions of people will not fade with time. Herodotus, Histories (ca 430 BC)

HISTORIAN OF THE FUTURE Historians study the past through sources (books, documents, artefacts, monuments), write down what they find in discursive form, narrate it to the public. The Web provides increased access to sources, better opportunities for collaboration in research and publication of outcomes, diversified strategies and tools for teaching What are digital historians doing and what are they thinking? In a certain sense all men are historians. Thomas Carlyle, Essays: On History

My research 1.Interviews with digital historians 2.Grounded Theory methodology 3.Initial findings 4.Open issues

1. INTERVIEWS WITH DIGITAL HISTORIANS 8 digital scholars/digital humanists in Italy 4 digital scholars/digital humanists in the UK Comparative perspective Interviews are conducted online or (in rare cases) in person Data are anonymous (they are connected with what they do online) – concepts, not testimony Interviews are conducted in the mother tongue of the interviewee – what is lost in translation?

2. (CLASSICAL) GROUNDED THEORY Qualitative social science methodology, very popular in health and education research, practitioner research No grand theories of great men but my own – Empowerment Fundamentals Theoretical sampling All is data Constant comparison Emergence - saturation Literature review is secondary As far as I know no historian uses CGT

3. INITIAL FINDINGS - ITALY Passion – desire to make stuff - fun Non conventional scholars (Political science, librarians, amateurs- appassionati, independent researchers) - Pioneers Non supportive environment – no career rewards No critical mass Skipped the middle phase but also Dialogue with non historians Different view of the role of the historian in society History is also a social science – role of theory

3. INITIAL FINDINGS - UK Long history (this is why we need to tell it!) – Association for history computing – support network Mainstream – mature stage – publish work ON DH Pressure from above and below Rewards not embedded Historians are much more publicly engaged to start with Digital History and Digital Humanities

3. INITIAL FINDINGS – general/common concepts Not all digital tools imply a shift in paradigm (e.g. online sources) Raw vs cooked Digital History The discipline is very conservative (why?) Training the future generations of historians is linked to their employability Showing impact should be easy, or is it? Do we care about impact, are we responsible for that? Publication: historical writing and dissemination is open to non academic (even amateur) historians.

4. OPEN ISSUES Relationship between Digital History and Digital Humanities What is real innovation in Digital History How do we breach the gap How do we train the future generations of historians Disciplinary-specific advantages: Public History, Oral History, Contemporary History