GLOBAL HISTORY OF MIGRATIONS

As part of the complementary and interdisciplinary activities that characterize the Bachelor’s degree program in History, this course contributes to the educational process by analyzing human mobility as an integral part of historical experience and, in particular, as a phenomenon that drives social, economic, political, and cultural change. In fact, the “global history” approach enriches the interpretive process because international migrations are characterized by transnationality, interactions, and connections. In this sense, the main objective of the course is to familiarize students with the concepts that characterize the study of migratory processes and with the related dynamics that have affected different societies from antiquity to the contemporary world, addressing issues of gender, identity, class, and ethnicity.

1. Knowledge and Understanding
The course provides the necessary tools for a basic understanding of migration from a historical perspective: to understand the major global flows that have characterized human mobility, to recognize the political, social, economic, cultural, and environmental issues that make immigration a comprehensive social phenomenon, and to grasp the fundamental concepts in migration studies.

2. Applying knowledge and understanding:
By the end of the course, students will have acquired knowledge that can be applied in accordance with the competencies listed below:
- ability to identify the major global migration waves;
- ability to recognize migratory phenomena within global historical contexts;
- ability to interpret migration as a structural phenomenon of modernity;
- ability to apply acquired historical knowledge to contemporary debates on immigration, connecting the past and present of the phenomenon;

3. Making judgements
- The ability to apply acquired knowledge to the critical analysis of various historical sources and quantitative and qualitative data, to develop a personal argument regarding migration processes, and to recognize the diversity of historiographical approaches to the topic.

4. Communication skills:
The ability to construct an oral or written argument and defend it critically in relation to the topics covered in the course. To achieve this objective, the course also includes group presentations, written exercises, and critical presentations (voluntary).

5. Learning skills:
Be able to apply the knowledge acquired in class to critically analyze the information encountered in daily life regarding migration dynamics from a global perspective.
Be able to independently gather bibliographic sources for the analysis of specific issues related to migration processes in the past and/or the present, and be able to apply this information in subsequent studies across the entire course of study.

Learning Outcomes (assessed through ongoing assessments and the final exam)
Based on the skills and competencies described above, students are expected to
- be able to consolidate their understanding of global migration flows in both synchronic and diachronic terms.
- be able to critically interpret the basic historiography pertaining to the field of migration studies.

Basic knowledge of modern and contemporary history.

1. What is migration? Definitions and categories
2. Human mobility prior to the first wave of globalization
3. Migration and Empires (1500–1800)
4. The “Great European Migration” (1800–1914)
5. World Wars and Forced Migration
6. Decolonization and Postcolonial Migration
7. Migration in the 20th and 21st Centuries: Contemporary Migration Crises

Manning, Patrick; Trimmer, Tiffany. Migration in World History. 3. ed. New York, Routledge, 2020.

For all students:
Written exam, lasting up to 2 hours (70% of the final grade), and oral exam, lasting approximately 20 minutes (30% of the final grade): Students must demonstrate the ability to map the main dynamics that have shaped the historical trajectory of the migration process, particularly from the first wave of globalization to contemporary migration flows, by critically and argumentatively analyzing, both in written and oral form, the historiography of migration studies, using reference texts. Passing the written exam is required to be eligible for the oral exam.

Attending students may choose, IF THEY PREFER, an ALTERNATIVE assessment process throughout the entire semester:
1. participation in seminars that are part of the course curriculum, as well as other proposed educational activities (20%);
2. 1-hour midterm exam (30%): the student must demonstrate the ability to map the main dynamics that have shaped the historical trajectory of the migration process, particularly the discussion of the first four units of the course, by critically and analytically examining the historiography of migration studies, using the assigned readings;
3. oral group presentation on a topic agreed upon with the instructor and related to the course content (20%);
4. 1-hour final exam (30%): Students must demonstrate their ability to outline the key dynamics that have shaped the historical development of the migration process, with particular focus on the topics covered in the last three units of the course, by critically and analytically examining the historiography of migration studies, using the assigned readings.

The final grade will be determined based on the following criteria:
- Knowledge of theoretical concepts (40%)
- Ability to critically analyze theoretical concepts (20%)
- Clarity and confidence in presentation (10%)
- Mastery of specialized terminology and appropriate use of language (15%)
- Ability to discuss topics independently and in a well-structured manner (15%)
The maximum possible score is 30/30. Honors may be awarded for excellent performance in all of the above categories.

Lectures, seminars, workshops on reading texts and documents, a guided viewing of a film related to the topics covered in the course, and an oral presentation.

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "International cooperation" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development