Teaching

Daniel Watkins has taught four undergraduate and two graduate classes at Baylor University. If you are interested in looking at the syllabi for any of the course below, feel free to contact Professor Watkins.

History 1300: Coming to America: The U.S. in Global Perspective
The history of the United States is intricately involved in the the histories of other parts of the world. In this class, students look at immigration to the United States from the colonial era to today and try to understand it as a phenomenon best explained through social, political, economic and cultural factors both within the United States and outside of it.

History 2395: The History Workshop
“Doing” history is not as simple as it may seem. In the History Workshop students learn the essential skills of the “historian’s craft.” They read about the history of the historical discipline, learn techniques for primary and secondary source analysis, and even find out about what career opportunities are open for people who receive an education in History.

History 4333: The French Revolution and Napoleon
In 1789, a revolution erupted in Paris and forever transformed the French state. In this class, students learn about how the French Revolution came about, why it proceeded as it did, and what brought about the rise and fall of Napoleon Bonaparte.

History 4343: France Since 1815
In many ways, the French Revolution of 1789-1799 gave birth to the concept of the French “nation.” Yet the questions of who was considered a part of this “nation” and what they were able to do were constantly debated in the two hundred years that followed. In this class, students study the phenomenon of French nationalism and look at how the experience of men and women in France changed over the past two centuries.

History 5320: Religion and the European Enlightenment
What role did religion play in the Enlightenment? This question forms the foundation of this graduate seminar. Students read current historical scholarship that look at everything from religion and gender in the eighteenth century to the Catholic Enlightenment and much more. In its most recent iteration, students in this seminar also produced a digital history project on the topic of religious toleration in Enlightenment Europe.

History 5393: Teaching the College Survey Course
This course provides an introduction to the study of pedagogy for Baylor History graduate students. Students learn about the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, backward design, how to build community and manage classrooms, strategies for assessment, and the various teaching methods and moves employed by History teachers.