Group Project: Shared Commodity, Divided Lenses
See what commodities other students are researching, browse the class-wide source archive, and coordinate with your group members.
Features:
💡 Why use this? Coordinate with your group, avoid duplicate lenses, get inspired by sources others have found, and ensure no two groups are doing the exact same commodity approach.
🚀 Open Class Dashboard →✓ No login required | ✓ Updated in real-time | ✓ Mobile friendly
Big Question: How did a raw material become a global commodity, and what does that process reveal about capitalism, empire, and globalization?
Group Structure: You will work in groups of 3-4 students. Each group studies one shared commodity, but each member investigates it through a different analytical lens:
Deliverables: Curated Mini-Archive (12-16 sources), Archive Rationale, Concept Map, Research Poster
Citation Style: Turabian (Chicago Notes/Bibliography)
Before diving into research, you'll need to choose your commodity and select your analytical lens within your group.
Choose your group's commodity and select your individual analytical lens. Define what your role means and what questions you'll investigate.
Best for: Group coordination, defining your focus, planning your research approach
Open Role Selection →✓ Save locally or submit to professor
Each student contributes 3-4 sources to create a group archive of 12-16 total sources.
Not sure where to start your research? Use this interactive tool to browse curated search phrases organized by your analytical lens, commodity, and region — then copy or search directly in JSTOR or Project MUSE.
Features:
✓ No login required | ✓ Links directly to JSTOR & Project MUSE
Step-by-step guidance for finding books on the MJC Library shelves and in digital format, plus primary sources — documents, photographs, newspapers, and records from 1800–1914 — to include in your mini-archive.
Features:
✓ No login required | ✓ Links directly to MJC library databases
Add and annotate 3-4 primary or secondary sources related to your analytical lens. Your sources will be added to a class-wide archive that everyone can browse.
What you'll do: Full Turabian citations, source analysis, historical questions, limitations, and connections to your lens
Features:
✓ Minimum 3 sources required | ✓ Class archive viewing enabled
Collaboratively write about why you chose these sources and reflect on your individual perspective.
Write a group rationale (750-1000 words) explaining your archive choices and themes, plus an individual reflection (150-250 words) on your analytical lens.
Group Rationale covers: Source selection, major themes, power & perspective, connections to capitalism/empire, comparison to Beckert's Empire of Cotton
Individual Reflection covers: How your lens shaped the archive, unique insights, remaining silences
Features:
✓ Word count tracking | ✓ Collaboration-friendly
Create a visual map showing production, labor, trade, and power structures.
Plan your visual flow diagram showing production regions, labor systems, trade routes, imperial power, and sites of coercion/extraction.
Planning sections:
Note: This worksheet helps you plan content. Create your actual visual map using Canva, PowerPoint, or hand-drawn poster.
Open Concept Map Worksheet →✓ Planning tool for group collaboration
Synthesize everything into a conference-style research poster for the gallery walk.
Plan your conference-style research poster that integrates all four analytical lenses and presents your group's findings.
Poster sections:
Note: This worksheet helps you draft content. Design your actual poster using PowerPoint, Canva, Google Slides, or poster board for the gallery walk.
Open Poster Planning →✓ Complete content planning | ✓ Prepare for gallery walk
Initial planning worksheet for understanding the central question and defining your commodity's early history.
Best for: Early exploration, concept clarification, and documenting pre-imperial trade context
Open Steps 1–2 Worksheet →No login required for this worksheet.
Project Instructions:
Citation & Style Guides:
Research Databases: