Aims of the course:
- To establish why (and if) the Western Roman Empire fell.
- To educate students into methods of historical enquiry.
- To teach collaborative working techniques in an online environment.
Course content overview:
- This course will examine the death of the Western Roman Empire as though it were a forensic case. We shall look at possible causes of death, match them with observed symptoms and deduce the likelihood that the suggested cause did indeed bring about the end result.
- in the first weeks we will look at a variety of causes. The last two weeks will ask firstly 'Did the Western Empire really fall?' (currently being hotly debated by academics), and secondly 'Why did the Eastern Empire survive?'
Schedule (this course is completed entirely online):
Orientation Week: 4-10 January 2021
Teaching Weeks: 11 January-14 February 2021
Feedback Week: 15-21 February 2021
Week 0 - Preparing to study this course
Purpose/Learning outcomes
By studying this week the students should have:
•Become familiar with navigating around the VLE and from VLE to links and back
•Tested their ability to access files and the web conferencing software and sorted out any problems with the help of the eLearning team
•Investigated the ICE Online Resources repository
•Learnt how to look for, assess and reference internet resources
•Used Qmail to introduce themselves to other students
•Contributed to a discussion forum to introduce themselves to other students and discuss why they are interested in the course, what they hope to get out their studies and also to respond to News item sent out on behalf of tutor
Week 1 - Was it the barbarians?
Purpose
To examine the role of barbarian incursions in the fall of the western empire. To query whether this is essentially a story of straightforward military conquest. The importance of the sack of Rome.
Learning outcomes
By studying this week the students should have:
•Familiarity with various barbarian tribes and confederations
•Understanding of the military and strategic issues of the fifth century
•An understanding of the chronology of the major barbarian invasions
•Engaged with original texts and sources
Week 2 - Did Rome rot from within?
Purpose
To examine the role that civil war, self-interest and a corrupt bureaucracy played in bringing down the empire.
Learning outcomes
By studying this week the students should have:
•Familiarity with the Late Imperial form of government
•Familiarity with the events of the period
•Understanding of academic debate on the issue, and means of enquiry
•Engaged with original contemporary texts
Week 3 - Was it something else?
Purpose
To discuss other theories for the fall of the western Roman empire. (e.g. Plague, economic collapse, Christianity, depopulation by famine, climate change.)
Learning outcomes
By studying this week the students should have:
•An understanding of the fragility of ancient societies
•An understanding of archaeological and epigraphic techniques
•An understanding of how to present and deconstruct historical theories
•Engaged with original contemporary texts
Week 4 - Did the West really fall?
Purpose
Some academics argue the Western Empire did not fall, but only changed profoundly.
Learning outcomes
By studying this week the students should have:
•Followed the current academic debate
•Re-evaluated the meaning of a 'fallen empire'
•Understood processes of continuity and change in 5th and 6th century Europe
•Engaged with original contemporary texts
Week 5 - Why did the East not 'fall'?
Purpose
To discover why the eastern Roman empire endured for another thousand years
Learning outcomes
By studying this week the students should have:
•Understood geopolitical issues in the 5th century
•Been introduced to the Byzantine era
•Grasped the basics of comparative history
•Engaged with original contemporary texts
Week 6 - What Next?
Purpose
•Assessment of student learning
•Assessment of student satisfaction
•Encouragement of further study
Each week of an online course is roughly equivalent to 2-3 hours of classroom time. On top of this, participants should expect to spend roughly 2-3 hours reading material, etc., although this will vary from person to person.
While they have a specific start and end date and will follow a weekly schedule (for example, week 1 will cover topic A, week 2 will cover topic B), our tutor-led online courses are designed to be flexible and as such would normally not require participants to be online for a specific day of the week or time of the day (although some tutors may try to schedule times where participants can be online together for web seminars, which will be recorded so that those who are unable to be online at certain times are able to access material).
Unless otherwise stated, all course material will be posted on the Virtual Learning Environment (VLE) so that they can be accessed at any time throughout the duration of the course and interaction with your tutor and fellow participants will take place through a variety of different ways which will allow for both synchronous and asynchronous learning (discussion boards,etc).
A Certificate of Participation will be awarded to participants who contribute constructively to weekly discussions and exercises/assignments for the duration of the course.
What our students say:
"The tutor's generosity in sharing his in-depth knowledge with the participants, his thought- provoking questions/answers to our contributions to the forum are the key points to how he provides us with a very enriching experience."
"Thinking about the questions Maty posed which, whilst based on the course material, went beyond the narrow historical facts alone to consider a range of wider issues and conjectural situations was both challenging and thought provoking. A thoroughly enjoyable course and a lot to ponder. "
Terms and Conditions and ICE Fee Information and Refund Policy
