History and photography is a module at the iSchool that examines how photography has affected history and the public’s portrayal of events. At the end of the quarter, students put together a gallery of their own work.

Students study history through photography, take their own photos at the during the course, and write about the personal connections to their photos.

In the class, students are given a different theme each week, and they are expected to take a photo relating to the given theme.

Each theme relates to a feeling or emotion, such as happiness, sadness, surprise, delight, etc.

All the photographs taken throughout the weeks are culminated into a gallery show at the Jefferson Market Library where the students pick their four favorite photos and put them on display.

“It’s fun to take a new photo every week because photography is a good form of expression,” said John Tillman, a freshman in the class.

The people in the art gallery were also impressed with the student’s work. Their teacher, Nicole Asher, said that the students got a lot of feedback at the gallery.

“The class definitely allows for student creativity,” Ms. Asher responded in an interview the day following the gallery show. “It was very thoughtful they got a lot of good feedback.”

Ms. Asher will keep teaching this module in the third quarter at the iSchool. The class will do the same work as the past one, taking meaningful pictures and interpreting them.

The history and photography module is one of the many arts-related modules where students like John can view the world through a different lens. This module will continue being one of students’ favorites because of its freedom of creativity and its popularity among the students at the iSchool.