When writing history for the web, historians should write in a style similar to that employed for academic essays. Sean Kheraj’s article Best Practices for Writing History on the Web highlights various tips about writing in an accessible manner. Kheraj advises authors to:
(i)Never use a metaphor, simile or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print.
(ii) Never use a long word where a short one will do.
(iii) If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out.
(iv) Never use the passive where you can use the active.
(v) Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.
(vi) Break any of these rules sooner than say anything barbarous.
These rules should apply to essays prepared for a history class. Metaphors and figures of speech work for tabloids or narrative books but have no place in historical writing. Conversely, students also frequently attempt to sound more “academic.” They add words that are improperly used or superfluous. To meet mandatory word counts, they speak in circular patterns, which makes reading the paper a chore. Another common mistake is using a passive voice. Recognizing passive voice eludes new writers, and it takes time and frequent comments from professors for students to avoid it.
I frequently find foreign phrases in secondary sources. It makes sense for authors to use foreign phrases when considering how many historical writers speak multiple languages, but Kheraj argues that this decreases accessibility and is unnecessary. I agree with Kheraj’s assessment and find it cumbersome to translate what the author thought was a simple phrase that readers would understand immediately.
Kheraj’s suggestion of using hyperlinks as super footnotes is a useful tip. I come across this when I casually search a topic on Wikipedia, and I wish that more authors would utilize this method. As sources become more digitized, it would add a new dimension to reading to be able to click on a source and investigate the author’s claims without experiencing constant paywalls (paywalls are websites that require a subscription to access its content).
The internet offers a unique way to present media to a large audience. Adding pictures, video, and sound clips helps engage people exploring your research topic and bolsters your arguments. It involves the reader into your research on another level and helps present a topic in depth. In addition to traditional methods of media representation, adding digital tools, such as StoryMapJS, Prezi, TimeToast, and other academic tools, will enhance the representation of the topic.
As digital history becomes more mainstream I expect to see it used in public school systems. It is important to lay down a proper foundation and academic standard for digital history now, otherwise students will have to navigate through an enormous amount of data to find sources that are worthwhile. The internet has become a medium for information that transcends cultural differences. Children are growing up with no concept of life before the internet, and digital history can be a new and effective way to present information to web-literate students.
In an English as a second language class we went over a document by Vygotsky and it is a perfect example of how language can prevent access to information.
Genetic Analysis of the Sign Operation SP18 Check out this link for an example.
