SELECTED TOPICS IN HISTORY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Let me first remind ourselves of the elementary „parameters" of our meetings
AIM OF THE COURSE: Historical themes presented in English
MEANS: Excursions into the history of science and technology
As a teacher, I expect marked differences in the knowledge of English among the
students. Some of you are namely going to become teachers of English (and history).
It is common knowledge that when learning a language, passive knowledge of a
language (reading, listenning) precedes its active use (writing, speaking). It is also well
known that those who never try a thing can hardly master it.
For the term essay, I prefer a text that is written by the student to a text copied from
somewhere. I also am not interested in texts written by somebody else for the student.
Thus the range for the length of the essay is from 3 to 6 pages. In any case, those
fluent in English definitely do have an advantage.
Apart from a regular essay (academic style), you may opt for another variant, namely
worksheets for school kids with a commentary.
Zde jsou tedy podmínky ukončení předmětu:
DEADLINE
Please hand in the essays a week before you need to have your mark in the system.
Latest deadline: 26 June 2021 (end of exam period: 3 July 2021)
FURTHER GUIDELINES – SPRING 2021
The aim of the essay is a concise presentation of any chosen topic from history of
science and / or technology.
There are two major possibilities:
- "practical version":
- a worksheet for teaching, with commentary for the teacher
- "virtual exhibit" – i. e. picures and accompanying text
- ... ? (suggest something else that may be of use in teaching)
- "teoretical version":
- an essay on the topic directed at the intellectual level of you, students
Please, specify the form you have chosen in order to avoid confusion
SOURCES
It is NOT necessary to use printed sources. Nevertheless, please, use your critical
thinking to assess your source.
In particular, do not quote newspapers for facts that are better found in encyclopedias.
Some encyclopedias are online, so you may use those (rather than Wikipedia).
No source is a priori good or bad; it depends on what you wish to say. If you wish to
say something about how Johann Gregor Mendel is presented in the newspapers, then
the newspapers are your primary source.
LAYOUT
Please, put a name and „učo“ at the top of your essay.
Page layout and typography will not be important for the evaluation, but unless you
are a creative artist, it is better to use a simple form.
Please, hand in the essay through „homework vault / odevzdávárna“ (or by e-mail).
REFERENCES
In the practical works, mention sources only in the materil for the teacher. In the
worksheet, you may suggest some reading on the topic suitable for the pupils.
In theoretical essays, I expect references in the footnotes. While the main text is a
story that you create on the basis of the texts you studied, the information in the
footnotes informs the reader of your sources for the particular statement.
Citation standard is not so important; please choose and use one throughout your
essay. The important thing is that I (or another reader) may go directly to the source
and read what exactly is written there, not just your interpretation.
When citing Internet sources, please, do not forget to mention the date when you (last)
visited the website.
On the other hand, for digitised books and journals, the date you visited the website is
not relevant.