Faculty Advisor: Lecturer, English Department, Yale

Research Practicum Introduction

This Junior Research Practicum will help younger students (7th-9th graders) develop analytical and writing skills critical to the humanities. The program gives students a chance to investigate the relationship between literature and history. In what way does a work of literature reflect the culture of its time? And in what way does a work of literature shape the culture of the time? 

Students will be provided with three case studies. Each case study will include one work of literature, and several academic articles about the historical issues underlying that work of literature. For example, students might be provided with Lord Tennyson Alfred's famous poem "The Charge of the Light Brigade" and articles on the Crimean War and English chivalric ideals.  

Engaging the relationship between literature and history not only provides insight into a key debate in the humanities, but requires students to develop essential skills in the field. Through analysis of literature, students will improve their close reading, learning how to identify figurative tropes. Through analysis of academic articles, students will advance their analytical reading, learning how to identify argumentative claims and historical data. 

Students will use both skills (close reading of literature and analytical reading of articles) to write their own proposal, usually in a length of 3-5 pages. This final work will answer the following question: "of the three works of literature presented as case studies in this program, which best represents the concerns of its time and why?" Answering this question requires that the student take a strong argumentative stance, and that he or she use detailed evidence from both the literary text and academic articles.  In the process of writing, students will receive guidance on how to structure an academic essay, and how to improve their sentence style and structure. 

While the main emphasis of this program is on writing skills, individual assessment will also be based on preparedness for, and participation in, online discussions.

Program Detail

• Cohort Size: This cohort is limited to 5-10 students

• Project Length: 12 weeks

• Workload: Average 3 hours per week (including class time and homework time)

• Schedule: TBD (Meetings will take place for around one hour per week, with a weekly meeting day and time to be determined a few weeks prior to the class start date.)

• Target Students: 7-9th grade students interested in History, Literature, Close Reading and/or Integrated Humanity. Students must be fluent in English and demonstrate self-management skills. This project is best for students with genuine curiosity in the subject, diligence, and initiative.