In response to the coronavirus pandemic, many colleges and universities are closing and switching over to online learning. That’s easier said than done. We would like to do what we can to help our academic network with this transition.
We have began gathering resources in these categories (click to navigate):
JMC academics willing to virtually guest lecture:
Previously, scholars have said they would be available as virtual guest lecturers. Let us know if you’d like to be added to a list as a lecturer, as well as some possible lecture topics.
Crowdsourced Videos in the Academic Community
The academic community has begun sharing short recorded lectures and discussion questions on political science. Consider adding your name or reaching out!
Click here to view a crowdsourced political science spreadsheet from Dominik Stecula >>
JMC online resources that may be helpful:
The JMC Resources Archive
Our searchable resources archive includes videos, syllabi, and essays that cover a wide variety of topics in American political thought and development.
JMC First Amendment Library
The JMC First Amendment Library contains primary documents, historical background, and further readings on religious liberty and free speech.
Visit the JMC First Amendment Library >>
Recordings of Constitution Day lectures
The Jack Miller Center sponsors Constitution Day celebrations around the country in America’s best colleges and universities. Several lectures are available on our YouTube channel.
View the playlist on YouTube >>
JMC YouTube Channel
The JMC YouTube channel has several playlists featuring speakers such as board member James Ceaser, faculty partner Michael Zuckert, faculty partner Allen Guelzo, and fellow Christopher Kelly speaking on topics such as the Declaration of Independence, Lincoln, and Rousseau.
Visit the JMC YouTube channel to view all playlists >>
Important Topics in American Political Development
The Jack Miller Center is pleased to offer several collections of resources that enhance understanding of American political development and history. Each collection focuses on an important aspect of the nation’s history. Resources draw from the writings of our fellows’, primary documents, and respected centers of knowledge, such as the Library of Congress and the National Archives.
Recorded lectures:
Hillsdale College Online Courses
Hillsdale College’s collection of online courses are available for free and cover topics in politics, history, literature, philosophy, religion, and economics. Lecturers include Hillsdale professors and speakers such as JMC board member Wilfred McClay and Victor Davis Hanson. Political science courses include Professor McClay’s “The Great American Story: A Land of Hope” which explores the history of America as a land of hope founded on high principles.
Open Yale Courses
Yale University offers a variety of free online courses. Each course includes a full set of class lectures produced in high-quality video accompanied by such other course materials as syllabi, suggested readings, exams, and problem sets. The lectures are available as downloadable videos, and an audio-only version is also offered. In addition, searchable transcripts of each lecture are provided. Political Science courses include “Capitalism: Success, Crisis, and Reform” with Douglas Rae and “Introduction to Political Philosophy” with JMC faculty partner Steven Smith.
Collected Lectures from the JMC Academic Network
Several professors have generously offered their own recordings or suggested lectures for use by the academic network. Below, find useful playlists and channels that offer lectures from scholars such as John Peterson, Paul Cantor, and Scott Yenor.
“Teaching Great American Speeches” with John Peterson
View the playlist on YouTube >>
“Shakespeare and Politics” with Paul Cantor
View the channel on YouTube >>
Scott Yenor on Political Philosophy and Literature
View the channel on YouTube >>
Federalism Lecture Series with Matthew Post
The Liberty and Learning Fellowship has collaborated with University of Dallas professor Matthew Post to produce a 10-part series on federalism and its philosophical foundations, constitutional basis, history, and current practice.
Click here to view the entire playlist on YouTube >>
Free Webinars from Arizona State University
Arizona State University will be hosting two virtual series. The School of Civic and Economic Thought and Leadership, a JMC partner program, will be holding “Pandemic Dialogues,” a series in the school’s Civic Discourse Project providing perspective on the current civic crisis through conversations among the school’s faculty and students, academic guests, and a wider community. This webinar series begins April 6. The series of virtual discussions will focus on works of literature, political thought, and popular culture that examine how pandemics impact society. The other series, “Race and the American Story” will serve as a virtual symposium with vibrant discussions on race and American culture. This series begins April 3. Both series are free and open to the public.
Click here to register for the “Pandemic Dialogues” and click here to register for “Race and the American Story” >>
C-SPAN3’s “Lectures in History” Series
In January, 2011, C-SPAN expanded its programming offerings with a new history-based service airing weekends on C-SPAN3. American History TV (AHTV) features programming geared toward history lovers with 48 hours every weekend of people and events that document the American story. The “Lectures in History” series features full-length classroom lectures from professors across the country.
Browse history lectures on C-SPAN3 >>
Lectures from the American Revolution Institute
Some of the American Revolution Institute’s lectures have been recorded and are available to watch online. These include recent installments of the annual George Rogers Clark Lecture, a program launched in 1975 to recognize the work of leading historians of the American Revolution; the Society of the Cincinnati Prize, awarded to the author of a distinguished work of history of the era of the American Revolution; and the Catesby Jones Lecture, which highlights the latest research on Revolutionary War history.
Primary sources online:
The Yale Avalon Project
The Avalon Project includes digital documents relevant to the fields of Law, History, Economics, Politics, Diplomacy and Government throughout world and American history. The Project not only mounts static text, but adds value to the text by linking to supporting documents expressly referred to in the body of the text.
Visit Yale’s Avalon Project >>
Oxford University Press: American Constitutionalism and American Political Thought
These sites includes hundreds of freely available documents that excerpt primary source material in the history of American constitutionalism (court cases, legislative hearings, executive branch legal opinions, etc.) and American political thought (books, pamphlets, speeches, novels, etc.). Each excerpt includes an introductory header. Instructors can browse through each chapter’s materials or use the sites’ indexes that list available materials.
Access resources for American constitutionalism here and resources for American political thought here >>
National Emergency Library
Internet Archive has just announced a National Emergency Library to provide digitized books to students and the public. As of March 24, 2020, the Internet Archive has suspended waitlists for the 1.4 million (and growing) books in its lending library by creating a National Emergency Library to serve the nation’s displaced learners. This suspension will run through June 30, 2020, or the end of the US national emergency, whichever is later. During the waitlist suspension, users will be able to borrow books from the National Emergency Library without joining a waitlist, ensuring that students will have access to assigned readings and library materials that the Internet Archive has digitized for the remainder of the U.S. academic calendar, and that people who cannot physically access their local libraries because of closure or self-quarantine can continue to read and thrive during this time of crisis, keeping themselves and others safe.
Learn more about the National Emergency Library and visit it here >>
Harvard University Press: Free Access to Loeb Classical Library
Harvard University Press has announced that access to the digital Loeb Classical Library will be free to schools and universities impacted by COVID-19 until June 30th.
Teaching American History
TeachingAmericanHistory.org is a project of the Ashbrook Center at Ashland University. Ashbrook offers educational programs for students, teachers, and citizens. To this end, TAH.org sponsors a variety of resources, courses, and programs to help classroom teachers improve their knowledge of American history, government, civics, and has an extensive online database of primary documents.
Visit Teaching American History >>
Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy
The Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy (IEP) was founded in 1995 to provide open access to detailed, scholarly, peer-reviewed information on key topics and philosophers in all areas of philosophy. At present, the IEP has over a million visitors per month, and about 20 million page views per year. The Encyclopedia is free of charge and available to all users of the Internet world-wide. The staff of 30 editors and approximately 300 authors hold doctorate degrees and are professors at universities around the world, most notably from English-speaking countries.
Visit the Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy >>
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (SEP) has nearly 1600 entries online as of March 2018. From its inception, the SEP was designed so that each entry is maintained and kept up-to-date by an expert or group of experts in the field. All entries and substantive updates are refereed by the members of a distinguished Editorial Board before they are made public.
Visit the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy >>
The Folger Shakespeare Library
Folger Shakespeare Library is the world’s largest Shakespeare collection, the ultimate resource for exploring Shakespeare and his world. It provides access to a huge array of resources, from original sources to modern interpretations. The Folger’s digital collection features Shakespeare’s plays for free. The website also includes articles with additional information on Shakespeare’s language, life, and the world he knew.
Explore the digital Folger Shakespeare Library >>
Ancient Greek Texts at the Chicago Homer
The Chicago Homer is a multilingual database that uses the search and display capabilities of electronic texts to make the distinctive features of Early Greek epics accessible to readers with and without Greek. Except for fragments, it contains all the texts of these poems in the original Greek. In addition, the Chicago Homer includes English and German translations, in particular Lattimore’s Iliad, James Huddleston’s Odyssey, Daryl Hine’s translations of Hesiod and the Homeric Hymns, and the German translations of the Iliad and Odyssey by Johan Heinrich Voss. Through the associated web site Eumaios, users of the Chicago Homer can also from each line of the poem access pertinent Iliad Scholia and papyrus readings.
Access the Chicago Homer’s collection >>
Ancient Greek Texts at the Center for Hellenic Studies at Harvard University
The Center for Hellenic Studies at Harvard University has several ancient Greek primary resources online, including Antigone, Libation Bearers, and The Apology of Socrates.
View the primary texts page at the Center for Hellenic Studies >>
Additional resources:
APSA Educate
The American Political Science Association has created a political science teaching resource library. The library, continuously growing, features syllabi, courses, and assignments.
RealClear Public Affairs: American Civics Pages
RealClear’s Public Affairs pages bring together clear accessible materials on the American experiment. Visitors will gain insight into topics ranging from the “self-evident” truths described in the Declaration of Independence and the framework that the Constitution set in place to prevent tyranny and secure rights and liberties to the virtues citizens must possess in order to enjoy freedom and self-government. Users will also find the 1776 Series: a collection of accessible essays written by scholars that explore how the American Founders understood themselves and the system of government they implemented. These essays give readers a clear and concise understanding of important American themes, such as the republican nature of the U.S. Constitution and Abraham Lincoln’s deep appreciation of the moral foundations of American self-government.
Visit Real Clear Public Affairs >>
Institute of Historical Research: Open and Free Access Materials for Historical Research
The Institute of Historical Research is collecting links to accessible online materials to help those writing dissertations and undertaking research. This listing is a work in progress, and they’re also asking you for additional recommendations to make the resource as useful as possible.
Click here for a listing of useful research sites >>
National Constitution Center: Scholar Exchange
As students are learning remotely during the COVID-19 crisis, the National Constitution Center will offer live interactive classes and webinars on the Constitution, led by National Constitution Center President & CEO Jeffrey Rosen and National Constitution Center Scholars Kerry Sautner, Tom Donnelly and Nicholas Mosvick. Offered for middle school, high school, and college students, these sessions allow students to sign up for remote learning via Zoom for daily lectures and lively conversations about the basic principles of the U.S. Constitution.
View all learning opportunities from the NCC here >>
The Newberry Library’s Digital Collections for the Classroom
The Newberry Library’s Digital Collections for the Classroom, is a wonderful repository of digital essays, digitized images from the Library’s collections, discussion questions, and lesson plans. Browse collections spanning topics from the Crusades to the Great Migration and discover 16th century maps, selections from historical periodicals, and poetry when browsing by item. You can even create your own collection!
Visit the Newberry Library’s digital collections >>
The Foundation for Constitutional Government
The Foundation for Constitutional Government is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization devoted to supporting the serious study of politics and political philosophy both online and on campus, with particular attention to the Constitutional character of American government and the founding of the United States. JMC board member Bill Kristol is particularly involved with the organization, which provides informative websites with videos and info on political philosophy as well as contemporary politics.
Conversations with Bill Kristol
In-depth, thought provoking discussions with leading thinkers and figures in American public life, hosted by Bill Kristol.
Visit Conversations with Bill Kristol >>
Great Thinkers
This site is aimed at introducing the great thinkers of Western thought, with a particular emphasis on political philosophy. Featuring biographies, introductory essays, bibliographies of the best secondary literature, as well as multimedia content on thinkers from Plato to Nietzsche, the site seeks to aid students and other interested parties in their study of the most fundamental ideas, texts, and thinkers of the tradition.
Contemporary Thinkers
Contemporary Thinkers is a series of websites devoted to the ideas and influence of pioneering intellectuals of the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. Many are from academic disciplines such as political science, philosophy, economics, and law, while others are journalists, critics, and novelists.
Visit Contemporary Thinkers >>
What So Proudly We Hail
Created by distinguished teacher-scholars Amy Kass and Leon Kass, the What So Proudly We Hail literary-based e-curriculum is a rich source of materials compiled to aid in the classroom instruction of American history, civics, social studies, and language arts. This collection of classic American stories, speeches, and songs is based on the Kasses’ critically acclaimed anthology of the same name. It seeks to educate both hearts and minds about American ideals, American identity and national character, and the virtues and aspirations of our civic life. Video discussions and in-depth study guides seek to recreate the experience of a seminar classroom.
Explore the What So Proudly We Hail online curriculum >>
Cambridge University Press: Free Online Access to Textbooks
Cambridge University Press is making higher education textbooks in HTML format free to access online during the coronavirus outbreak. Over 700 textbooks, published and currently available, on Cambridge Core are available regardless of whether textbooks were previously purchased. Free access is available until the end of May 2020.
General advice for teaching online:
Hertog Foundation: Online Learning Tips
The Hertog Foundation has collected all of its tips for teaching online in one document. The document also includes a guide for students on Zoom learning & etiquette!
View the online learning tips here >>
Stanford University: Teaching Effectively During Times of Disruption
“Teaching during times of potential disruption requires creative and flexible thinking about how instructors can support students in achieving essential core course learning objectives. This document offers suggestions for instructors in Stanford University’s PWR and Thinking Matters looking to continue offering a student-centered learning experience in a remote or online learning environment.”
Harvard University: Tips for Teaching Remotely
“Moving a course you designed for face-to-face delivery to an online environment undoubtedly poses certain challenges, not least of all the question of how to communicate clearly to students how they will be expected to interact with your new course materials and/or new modes of communication. Some aspects of your course may remain unchanged; others, however, will have to adjust to accommodate the new ways in which students will be interacting with you and with each other.”
View tips on teaching remotely from Harvard here and here >>
Transitioning to Online Teaching: A How-To Guide
The American Historical Association has planned to announce guidelines in June 2020 for online teaching in history, and will continue to work to do so. In the meantime, it is publishing a series of short pieces in Perspectives Daily to help the many historians now working to navigate this emergency.
Read the online teaching guide from Steve Hintz >>
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