At present, I am one of very few members of the Department of History who extensively use the Web, and will therefore be in an excellent position to be a mentor to my colleagues as they enhance their courses using instructional technology. I can also be useful to the thirty secondary school teachers who participate each year in the Stratford Hall Plantation Seminar on Slavery, which I direct and for which VCU grants graduate credit.
Frequent reinforcement is essential in such introductory survey classes.
So is the need for students to learn how to read historical documents. Understanding of the written and material records of history is one of the most important goals we have for history students. The more documents and other primary sources they have to deal with, the better. But the more documents they can evaluate and discuss in class, the especially better. Use of CD-ROM and Web materials will also help students to learn how to assess the value of images.