History special topics

Aisling(",)

ok well basically weve to submit 3 proposals for our special topic by halloween and have our 3 sources identified because were to have it done by the end of 5th year.anyone got an interesting ideas?

i wouldnt really wanna do anything to do with irish history because i find it un nessicarilly(sp) tedious.so maybe something to do with ww2....any ideas?
or what did you do for your special topic?

Coco88

Aisling(",) wrote:

ok well basically weve to submit 3 proposals for our special topic by halloween and have our 3 sources identified because were to have it done by the end of 5th year.anyone got an interesting ideas?

i wouldnt really wanna do anything to do with irish history because i find it un nessicarilly(sp) tedious.so maybe something to do with ww2....any ideas?
or what did you do for your special topic?

what about Land acts in ireland from 1870 and the Conservative Policy towards Irelands construtive unionism

im...LOST

Albert Einstein?

That's what I did.

Mars Bar

im...LOST wrote:

Albert Einstein?

That's what I did.

How did you do in it?

dan719

J.M Keynes and his contribution to the Paris peace conference, just read his autobiography. Told my mate to do it and he got a hundred marks.

JC 2K3

Coco88 wrote:

what about Land acts in ireland from 1870 and the Conservative Policy towards Irelands construtive unionism

I did "The Actions of the US Government during the Cuban Missile Crisis".

Specific case studies on WW1/2, the Cold War etc. are the way to go IMO. It'd be nice to do something different or obscure, but it's a bitch getting decent and reliable sources.

Aisling(",)

thanks for the suggestions i keep on getting people telling me to do a specific battle and why peopel lost etc but it just dosent apppeal to me.

Ive been thinking about doing somehting on concentration camps...fairly bog standard but easy enough to find resources on.

heard some mad ideas a girl did coco channel last year,also think some one did something on the beatles....i wish i had ideas but my heads gone blank!

JC 2K3

A project on one specific concentration camp or a specific event that happened in a concentration camp would be good.

randylonghorn

Would you be interested in doing something with a focus on women's history? In recent years there has been a big rise in interest in this area, and a lot more published.

If you were prepared to look at Ireland, women and the vote is a straightforward one, or how about women and higher education? Did you know, for example, that Trinity awarded degrees to women well before Oxford or Cambridge, and that at one stage women graduates from the Oxbridge colleges would come over to Trinity to receive their degrees?

If you wanted to stick with WW2, maybe something on the WRENs, or the Land Girls, or women in the resistance? Not quite as easy to get your hands on material, but given that you're in Dublin, shouldn't be much of a problem.

Mars Bar

I'd love to do a music personality...
The Beatles would be cool...

Or maybe James Dean...

Any other ideas?

Aisling(",)

mars bar wrote:

I'd love to do a music personality...
The Beatles would be cool...
Any other ideas?

Elvis!:D

randylonghorn wrote:

nghorn Would you be interested in doing something with a focus on women's history? In recent years there has been a big rise in interest in this area, and a lot more published.

its not something ive considered but its a good idea.....:)

TelePaul

Aisling(",) wrote:

i wouldnt really wanna do anything to do with irish history because i find it un nessicarilly(sp) tedious.so maybe something to do with ww2....any ideas?
or what did you do for your special topic?

Role of the 82nd/101st airborne in WW2 (specifically Normandy for the latter), role of 101st Airborne in the battle of the bulge (defense of bastogne), Battle of Arnhem bridge, 1st Airborne Army in holland, the SAS Ops in ww2 (cool book coming out about Paddy Mane), the Winter War (this is a very interesting subject that gets glossed over a good bit), evacuation of Dunkirk, Battle of Stalingrad, Bombing of Pearl Harbour, Battle of Midway, Battle for Iwo Jima, The Blitzkrieg, The Blitz....

Steve01

'Carol Vordeman at the BRIT Awards - WHAT was she wearing?'

That was my topic last year and I got 99/100. I found it surprising since its well outside the date margins, but the SEC must have been in the mood for tack-filled fun when they were marking mine

Mars Bar

Aisling(",) wrote:

Elvis!:D

Already gone in our class

Fenny

Is doing something on The Beatles a bit too mainstream or pop culturey? I always thought the examiners wouldn't like it, otherwise I'd love to do it!

My special topic is on Edith Cavell and the role she played in WWI leading up to her execution.

Mars Bar

I'm doing The Beatles!!

mise19

i did Harry Boland.

Got an A1:)

lilmissprincess

Um...I'm doing History on my own...like with guidance of a teacher...haven't heard anything about this....so...what do i have to do exactly?

Coco88

dan719 wrote:

J.M Keynes and his contribution to the Paris peace conference, just read his autobiography. Told my mate to do it and he got a hundred marks.

Really is this true

dan719

No it's a lie.:rolleyes:

Of course it is true.

Steez

Last year i did weapon development during WW2, picked a few of each side and just went into their development, use and so on.
Word of warning though if you do something, don't fill it with tech info and specs. Calibre is enough. Too many figures cause marks to drop off (didnt see my script so im not sure myself).

Repeating this year and doing Joseph Mengele.

Lizzykins

My niece did the bombing of the North Strand in 1941 which nicely tied in Irish and WW2 history. There is a huge amount of info out there in newspapers and in Dail records. The reason she chose that was because her great great great grandfather had lived in one of the houses that was destroyed although he was long dead by the 1940s. Another plus was that there are people still alive that remembered it happening so she got some first hand memories. Got up in the nineties as far as marks went.

ally_mull

I was advised to do something local by a friend! Ive yet to delve into my research also! q, do most people have the research study done by 5th year? because Im in 6th, and my teacher didnt mention it at all this year

Aisling(",)

well our techer wants it done this year so we have more time to study next time!

thinking of doing the sinking o the mail ship the lenster as mi gret grandad dies on it and its specific enough so it wont be hard enough to break down!

Killaqueen!!!

I'm only in 5th year at the mo, but I want to be thinking about my special topic because I know it'll take me forever to decide when it comes to 6th year.

For people who've done it, do you think you'd get less marks for something predictable like WW2 (even though it has a huge range of facinating topics IMO) in comparison to something completely off course that the exam corrector may not have heard of? I think it's a bit unfair if it's as so. I would be hugely interested in doing something on music, even just on a favourite band of mine but I was wondering if my interest would compromise good marks on the special topic, even if I did it well.

Ya get me?

JC 2K3

It has to be historically important, not artistically. I don't think that the general history of any one band would be a good enough topic to do. You want something very specific, not too broad and not over too long a period of time that you can analyse from a number of viewpoints.

My advice would be to stay away from doing something in relation to popular culture such as music or sport.

There'd be many marks docked for doing a broad study on WW2, but it would definately be a good idea to pick some specific battle or event(or some aspect of a specific battle or event) and analyse it thoroughly.

mise19

Killaqueen!!! wrote:

I'm only in 5th year at the mo, but I want to be thinking about my special topic because I know it'll take me forever to decide when it comes to 6th year.

For people who've done it, do you think you'd get less marks for something predictable like WW2 (even though it has a huge range of facinating topics IMO) in comparison to something completely off course that the exam corrector may not have heard of? I think it's a bit unfair if it's as so. I would be hugely interested in doing something on music, even just on a favourite band of mine but I was wondering if my interest would compromise good marks on the special topic, even if I did it well.

Ya get me?

I know someone who got an A1 in history and he chose michael collins for his research topic - even though many teachers advise against topics like that.

Bottom line is, choose an aspect of the topic that appeals to you and is interesting.
It will come across very well

wireless101

Do you guys think teh battle of Stalingrad is too broad a topic? It was a massive battle after all

spurious

It's a bit broad, but there are many fascinating sub-topics within it.

The role of snipers, the role of non-German forces on the Nazi side, the Kessel, the effective use of slash and burn by the retreating Russians, the attempts by high-ranking German officers to change Hitler's ridiculous strategy, the prospect of imprisonment in a Soviet prisoner of war camp and how it influenced morale, the role of propaganda at home, in particular with relation to the eastern front, etc.

Did you see the two part documentary on it over the last two weekends on RTE2? Horrific stuff - such unnecessary loss of life.

wireless101

I like the sound of:

'the role of non-german forces on the Nazi side'

'the attempts by high-ranking German officers to change Hitler's ridiculous strategy'

Do you think I could easily access information on these topics?

Unfortuantely i missed that documentary. incidentally, can you use a doumentary as a source?

spurious

It's a pity you missed that documentary - it was very good.
Amazon have it.

There is plenty of material available on both the topics you mentioned.

Non-German armies involved would have been mainly the Hungarian Second army and the Romanians, with some involvement of Italian units.

My interest in historical research projects is through the Junior Cert. subject Environmental and Social Studies and certainly if a candidate submitted an E.S.S. project on some aspect of Stalingrad using a documentary as one of the listed sources, there would be no problem. I have not taught the new Leaving Cert. course yet so I cannot speak on that, sorry.

Papillon87

Just a general pointer guys. I'm sure you're all well aware of this, but be very careful that you focus on an aspect of the historical event you choose as your research topic. It's crucial. Writing a general essay on concentration camps or a giving the life story of Goebbels isn't the way to go and you'll ultimately suffer in the marking of your piece.

As far as what you choose, I can't stress how important it is that you try and choose something that interests you! You're going to have to research, read, write drafts, revise drafts etc etc ad nauseam so if you're already dealing with something you find dull, it's going to be more of a chore to you.

Personally, I always hated Irish history...interested in the Civil Rights' Movement so chose to do that. I have always had a huge love for soul and motown music, so my essay was on how black music was instrumental in the progress of the civil rights movement...my teacher always said picking something original pays off because the examiner is usually sick of reading through stuff on Countess Markiewicz 99/100 at the end of the day..so I wasn't too bad and I can honestly say I loved my topic.....gave me an excuse to avoid studying! Good luck!

TerrorFirmer

wireless101 wrote:

I like the sound of:

'the role of non-german forces on the Nazi side'

'the attempts by high-ranking German officers to change Hitler's ridiculous strategy'

Do you think I could easily access information on these topics?

Unfortuantely i missed that documentary. incidentally, can you use a doumentary as a source?

Those topics are extremely easy to research. I could write you an essay right now if you wanted

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Stalingrad

I don't think Stalingrad itself is too broad, but it would have to be an excellent piece - I'd say a sub topic would be a far wiser move. Also, something original would be a bonus, even outside the scope of the battle. What about the German counter offensives of Spring 1943 after Stalingrad - they restored the Germans lines back to what they had been before the battle for Stalingrad yet it's not really considered in any LC history book. They tend to hop from one massive battle to the next, with little on what happened in between. They tend to read like a childs book - 'The Germans lost at Stalingrad and lost battle after battle thereafter and were finally defeated in May 1945' is more or less what my own history book said, it was rubbish.

Wikipedia is excellent. From that main article you can go off on any tangent, including the axis armies holding the flanks, strategy and tactical doctrine, the lead up to the battle...they're all seperate articles if you click on them.

swimfan22

I did a specific battle in WW1, in fact a specific aspect of that battle and I couldn't believe the amount I was able to find and write about on something I thought was a really narrow topic. So try and pick something fairly specific but be sure you've enough to write on!! I got 100/100 so I was delighted But pay attention to the review you have to put in the extended essay, a lot of my friends lost marks there cos they didn't think it was worth the time

Papillon87

swimfan22 wrote:

I did a specific battle in WW1, in fact a specific aspect of that battle and I couldn't believe the amount I was able to find and write about on something I thought was a really narrow topic. So try and pick something fairly specific but be sure you've enough to write on!! I got 100/100 so I was delighted But pay attention to the review you have to put in the extended essay, a lot of my friends lost marks there cos they didn't think it was worth the time

Yup seconded, review, outline plan etc. are areas lots of people overlook...the actual essay only ends up counting for 60 marks.

Mars Bar

HavoK wrote:

Those topics are extremely easy to research. I could write you an essay right now if you wanted

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Stalingrad



Wikipedia is excellent. From that main article you can go off on any tangent, including the axis armies holding the flanks, strategy and tactical doctrine, the lead up to the battle...they're all seperate articles if you click on them.

You are certainly NOT allowed use Wikipedia as it can be edited by everyone and anyone...if you give a link from wiki as a source you would lose a lot of marks...

TerrorFirmer

mars bar wrote:

You are certainly NOT allowed use Wikipedia as it can be edited by everyone and anyone...if you give a link from wiki as a source you would lose a lot of marks...

I never said to use it as a link, but as a basis for research. Anyway, Wikipedia is nearly always accurate, and you can spot inconsistencies easily if you're researching properly and not just using Wikipedia as a sole source.

Also, do you have to have a bibliography for your special topic or something? Because I only did my leaving a few years ago and it was a preprepared essay, nothing more. Certainly no references or bibliography. Just a question I answered in there. And I got an A in my leaving, so it's not like I did anything wrong. So I'm confused by all of this outline, reviews, sources talk.

Papillon87

HavoK wrote:

Also, do you have to have a bibliography for your special topic or something? Because I only did my leaving a few years ago and it was a preprepared essay, nothing more. Certainly no references or bibliography. Just a question I answered in there. And I got an A in my leaving, so it's not like I did anything wrong. So I'm confused by all of this outline, reviews, sources talk.

Hi Havok
I did my Leaving in 2006, the first year of the new History examination. You now do your research essay beforehand and submit it in April of the exam year, the exam is a little shorter and you do 3 essays and a mandatory document question in the exam itself. You have to have a fairly detailed bibliography, links to websites you accessed with times etc, along with all the outline plan, sources and review malarkey

TerrorFirmer

Ah right, that explains it. Makes it alot easier for the newer students so.:)

Michaelrsh

Hey all,

I was thinking of doing a project on The War of 1812 (a war between the USA and britain - thought it might be interesting), mainly focusing on it's outcome. I was wondering if it was a smart idea to do a project on something outside Europe and as old as 1812.

Other than that I was thinking of doing the project on the origins of Nazism, and it's links with Asian theology.

Aisling(",)

mine is the reasons for the high death toll on the allies side in the battle of the somme.

ive to have a first draft done by september and havent started oops!

Kane-N-Nite

Its time to bring the hammer down on History projects.....

ateam

Michaelrsh wrote: »

Hey all,

I was thinking of doing a project on The War of 1812 (a war between the USA and britain - thought it might be interesting), mainly focusing on it's outcome. I was wondering if it was a smart idea to do a project on something outside Europe and as old as 1812.

Other than that I was thinking of doing the project on the origins of Nazism, and it's links with Asian theology.

The War of 1812 is correctly known as the Anglo-American War of 1812 because the War of 1812 implies that it was the only war that year, which it wasn't. It's just American bias calling it the War of 1812.

degausserxo

I'm doing affirmative action under Nixon and how it created the black middle class.

PrivateEye

**Start on it this summer.

My history teacher left ours FAR too long. I was long finished but, and just got to chillax. I'm mad into Irish history so it was no work at all tbh.

I did it on Anti Fascism within Irish Republicanism, 1930-45, focusing on a particular organisation and working around them.


As Gaeilge and all. Do a rough one in one of the booklets they give you to fill out, see how it goes space-wise.

Is it true the marks are very easy to get on these projects?

Fuascailt

I think the average was about 90 per cent last year. I loved my project. It was called Surviving GUBU:Charles Haughey 1982-83. It was soo interesting. We had our extended essay done for summer tests fifth year, and did the rest before Christmas. Do people actually do things like the outline plan first? Or does everyone just do the essay first?

leprehaungirl

Hey everyone,
I was thinking of doing something to do with Micheal Hogan (tipp goalkeeper who was shot in croker on bloody sunday)..i have some good sources (my mams from where hes from and i have book written by the locals which includes stories about bloody sunday)bassially looking at that aspect of bloody sunday....


Alterantively i wa thinking about JKF...His assanation and his links/history with irleand...im not realy sure on the aspect yet..

anyways advice would be appriacated!
thanks

PrivateEye

Hogan would be a good one I think,there's some good material on bloody sunday in the GAA Museums Archives I'm sure they'd be willing to help you out with. Friend of mine did a similar project this year, was delighted with it too.

I orginally did mine on 'Women in the Easter Rebellion' , but for some reason just had a change of heart-even though it was 70 or 80% done...that can happen too. Go with what interests you most and the marks will come easy peasy from there.

pvt.joker

How about Michael Collins' squad ?!

I think 50% of people do it on this.

PrivateEye

So many people in my class did it on Mick Collins related things we had to watch the film in class, which I've always hated.

Feckin' freestaters :pac:

quoteunquote

I never understood why people chose to do Irish history. Bleugh....I hated it

I did Scientific and Medical Experiementation at Nazi Concentration Camps .Maybe you'd like something along that line??? If you can stand looking at the pictures in the articles.