History Communication courses have been taught at several universities. Early results are positive, as well as offering challenges:
- History Communication excites students. It is a class that generates buzz, even if not all students interested in the course wind up taking it.
- History Communication has the potential to increase enrollments. It can help make a graduate or undergraduate history program attractive to current and future students.
- History Communication holds potential for new interdisciplinary collaborations—though those collaborations also bring challenges.
- History Communication forces students and faculty to step outside of comfort zones and integrate new assignments. This helps inculcate new skills and also creates challenges when faculty may not have the expertise to evaluate assignments (e.g., video).
- Like any new course, History Communication faces sustainability issues. Investment from departmental leadership and supportive faculty are essential to ensuring the course can perpetuate.
Read more on the National Council on Public History’s History@Work.