GOAL – to present advances in science and technology from the Medieval period, roughly from 500-1300. The objective is also to show that the Medieval era was not an era of stagnation in science, technology, invention, etc.

ROLE – you are researcher and writer.

AUDIENCE (or READERS) – non-scholars, non-engineers, non-scientists, people interested in History, people with at least remote knowledge of Medieval history, people with biases or misimpressions about the Medieval era.

SITUATION – The prevalence of contemporary biases against the Medieval era as primitive or as an era of stagnation or barbarism or even savagery requires research and presentation of this sort. Many people even use the word “Medieval” to mean primitive. Many also use the phrase “Dark Ages” to refer to the whole Medieval era.

PRODUCT – a presentation of various innovations; inventions; discoveries; improvements of devices,

tools, implements, etc from the Medieval era. the innovations discussed will be from the following fields:

Food and Agriculture (tools, implements, methods, etc) Warfare (armor, weapons, defenses, strategies, etc) Navigation and Travel (instruments, vessels, etc) Building and Architecture (methods, materials, designs, etc), including urban

development Mining and Metals (mining methods, smelting methods, metal uses, etc)

the format will be question-and-answer primer in a pamphlet. the primer must answer important questions about the innovation such as:

*How does the innovation work?1

*What were the earlier versions (the ones prior to the improvement) like? When was the innovation made2? *What problem did the innovation seek to solve? *What were the benefits or advantages of the innovation? What were the disadvantages of the innovation? *What impact did the innovation have on society and on the lives of people at that

time? *What long-term impact did the innovation have on society and on lives of people?

STANDARDS – your teacher will look for the following: Handling of information: completeness, accuracy, relevance Clarity of explanation: non-technical, non-prevalence of jargon Use of illustrations in aid of clarity, at least one Proper format Correct use of language conventions such as grammar, spelling, punctuation

1 Questions with an asterisk are important, even essential. 2 You might not be able to pinpoint the exact date or the inventor. It will be enough to cite an approximate date or say what the earliest records were of the innovation. The innovation may have first emerged in a non-Western European land.

1

Project MED-TECH – a Primer on Medieval Technology

Word fluency and sentence constructionGUIDELINES

You need not answer the exact questions given above. What matters is the completeness of information in response to the questions. A reasonable guideline is that the primer must present basic information about the innovation that a reader would reasonable look for.

Answers must be in complete sentences. Bullet point brevity will be held against you. You may not discuss innovations taken up in class such as the stirrup, longbow, heavy

plow, and horse’s yoke. You may discuss innovations mentioned in the book, but you must add information. You are limited to innovations from the Medieval era, about 500-1300. Copy-and-paste of text (a.k.a Plagiarism!) is ABSOLUTELY forbidden and will merit a

zero, not 65, not to mention strained relations. You must cite your sources, both from the Net and from books. Use correct MLA format. Copy-and-paste, with a Net address in a footnote, or endnote or the like is still plagiarism. Illustrations may be copied and pasted, but still with proper attribution. Group output guidelines:

Each group will have about five members. The leader will also discuss one innovation of his own and coordinate the work of

members. Each group will discuss one area, and each member will discuss one innovation in

that area. The output must be in pamphlet form. Microsoft Word Publisher or some similar

application might be useful here. The pamphlet must have a properly designed cover and a table of contents with the

names of the student-contributors. Give your pamphlet an appropriate title. The group leader can take care of this, with the approval of the group members.

The leader will also compile and format the work of the group. Only individual outputs will be graded. There will be no group grade.

INSTRUCTIONS and SCHEDULE Pamphlet format, portrait orientation, properly bound together at the sides. Short bond paper (8 ½” by 11”) The output of each researcher must be about four pamphlet pages. Times New Roman, regular, size 11 Schedule: (Research will be done out of class.)

Day One – Orientation, setting of assignments, initial discussion Day Two – In-class work and consultation Day Three – Continuation Day Four – Consolidation and completion Day Five – Submission

2

Figure 1 http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTlf8KYJiuuf1S6gyJS5Ffy6G2CPbC5jBcA56UD-uRJHMUgYX-A Figure 2 http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQq-

m4zohoZpbqYDalj98QjARsn7tAILoU77dtZzrtCI0PXQjr0