Causation – Migration
STUDENT MATERIALSSTUDENT MATERIALSS-1CAUSATION—MIGRATIONWORLD HISTORY PROJECT 1200 / LESSON 3.1 ACTIVITYPreparation• Download “Transatlantic Migration Patterns”PurposeUnderstanding the causes and consequences of historical events and processes is an essential skill for historians. Sometimes, it’s easy to see how one event caused another, but usually, it’s far more complicated than that. Most historical events have multiple causes, and these can vary from short term, intermediate term, or long term. Without an understanding of historical causation, you may not correctly attribute why something happened. This is not only relevant when looking at history, but when looking at events in your own lives. In this activity, you will learn how to differentiate between short-term, intermediate-term, and long-term causes and classify the reasons why people began to migrate after the Columbian Exchange, and also why they migrate today.PracticesContextualization, claim testingThe focus of this activity is on causation, but in order to fully understand causal relationships, you must be able to place these historical events or processes in the context of their time and place. Use the language of contextualization in this activity whenever possible. Finally, claim test the assertions you make in the short writing assignment at the end of the activity.ProcessIn this activity, you will read the article “Transatlantic Migration Patterns” to determine the causes for why people began to migrate during this period. You’ll add these causes to the Causation Tool, which is included in the Causation—Migration worksheet, and then respond to a causal prompt.Have you ever moved? Maybe across town, or out of state, or even out of the country? What were the reasons for your move? There are all kinds of reasons for moving. Why do you think people decided to take a dangerous journey across the Atlantic Ocean between the sixteenth and nineteenth centuries? Be prepared to discuss your answers with the class to create a list of causes for why people migrated during this period. Your teacher will write the class’s list on the board.Next, download and read the article “Transatlantic Migration Patterns.” As you read, underline or highlight information that relates to reasons why people began to migrate. Once you’ve read the article, you’ll review your information in small groups to create a list of all the causes you found for transatlantic migration. After your group has identified all causes, discuss these as a class and compare with the list on the board. Did you do a good job of predicting some of the reasons for transatlantic migration? Unless otherwise noted, this work is licensed under CC BY 4.0. Credit: “Causation—Migration”, OER Project, https://www.oerproject.com/
STUDENT MATERIALSSTUDENT MATERIALSS-2CAUSATION—MIGRATIONWORLD HISTORY PROJECT 1200 / LESSON 3.1 ACTIVITYThen, review a few categories of causation, along with the language we use to describe them:• Time: Long term, intermediate term, and short term• Historical significance:οAmount—How many people’s lives were affected by the cause/effect?οDepth—Were people living in the time period being studied deeply affected by the cause/effect?οEndurance—Were the changes people experienced as a result of this cause/effect long-lasting and/or recurring?In this activity, you are adding one more category: Type. Categorizing causes by historical type will help you group similar causes together, which is the kind of analysis that historians do when they categorize the economic or political causes of an event or process. Review the different categories for type. There’s also a mnemonic device to help you remember these categories: PIECES.• Type: Historical typeο(P) Political—What type of government, organization, or power structure was there? Who was in charge? Did people vote or have a say?ο(I) Innovation—What did they invent? Were there any new developments or technologies?ο($) Economic—What jobs were there? Did they use money? Did they trade?ο(C) Cultural—What/whom did they worship? What/whom did they believe in? Did they have written language? Did they leave any artifacts behind, such as art, customs, sports, dress, language, music, dance, foods, celebrations?ο(E) Environmental—How did they attempt to control or use the environment? What impact did the land, water, and nature around them have on the way they lived?ο(S) Social—Were there different roles for men and women? Did they live in family units? Did they interact with other groups? Did they have a social structure (enslaved, priests, kings)?After you’ve reviewed this category of causal analysis, work in your group to complete the Causation Tool. First, add your causes and effects then categorize your list of causes by time and type (we’ll get to the other categories of causation in later activities).Finally, write a response (two to four sentences) to the question:What was the most significant cause AND what was the most significant effect of migration in this era?Remember to use the language of causation to help frame your responses, and back up your assertions with evidence. Be sure to include categorizations from the tool—time and type—as well as historical significance. To wrap up, think about whether your most significant cause and effect are connected. The most significant causes and effects can be quite different and even seem unrelated, which is one of the things that makes causation more complicated than it may seem on the surface! Your teacher may extend this activity by asking you to create a list comparing transatlantic migration during this historical era to migration today.
STUDENT MATERIALSSTUDENT MATERIALSS-3CAUSATION—MIGRATIONWORLD HISTORY PROJECT 1200 / LESSON 3.1 ACTIVITYCausation ToolDirections: First, add the event you are analyzing (in the middle of the page). Be sure to include dates, location, and a brief description of the event. Then, list your causes (at the top of the page) and use the legend to help you label type and role. Finally, list the effects of the event (bottom of page), and again use the legend to help you label type and role. If your teacher asks you to create a causal map, use your answers here to help construct that causal representation.Causes: Long-TermIntermediate-TermShort-TermEvent (include the name, dates, location, and a brief description) EffectsLegendType:(P) Political (I) Innovation ($) Economic (C) Cultural (E) Environmental (S) SocialRole:(*) Triggering Event Necessary Relevant