Harvey J. Graff (born 1949) is a comparative social historian as well as a professor of English and History at Ohio State University.[2] His writings on the history of literacy have been published in eight countries and he is acknowledged internationally for his contributions to urban studies and urban history. Some of his more notable works include two books entitled The Literacy Myth and Conflicting Paths: Growing Up in America.[3]
Harvey J. Graff
Born
1949
Known for
Scholarship on social history and the history of literacy
Before coming to his current residence at Ohio State University in 2004, Graff taught at the University of Texas at Dallas from 1975 to 1998 and the University of Texas at San Antonio from 1998 to 2004.[4] He was a strong proponent of quantitative social science methods in history. He was elected the president of the Social Science History Association (1999-2000). In his presidential address Graff argued that traditional historians had successfully counterattacked against quantification and the innovations of the "new social history":
The case against the new mixed and confused a lengthy list of ingredients, including the following: history’s supposed loss of identity and humanity in the stain of social science, the fear of subordinating quality to quantity, conceptual and technical fallacies, violation of the literary character and biographical base of “good” history (rhetorical and aesthetic concern), loss of audiences, derogation of history rooted in “great men” and “great events,” trivialization in general, a hodge-podge of ideological objections from all directions, and a fear that new historians were reaping research funds that might otherwise come to their detractors. To defenders of history as they knew it, the discipline was in crisis, and the pursuit of the new was a major cause.[5]
Books
The Literacy Myth
Written in 1979, this book studies 19th century educators who supported the "literacy myth", as Graff calls it, which is the assumption that literacy translates to economic, social, and cultural success. Graff suggests that this myth views literacy as a necessity for success, and a means to an economic, social, or political end. His research contradicts this, suggesting “that connections between schooling and social mobility are not natural ones".[6] He goes on to say that reality contradicts inborn assumptions correlating literacy and success.[6]
Conflicting Paths: Growing Up in America
The assumption has been made by scholars and the general populace alike “that children have followed in the paths marked out for them by adults, and the possibility that they developed their own reactions and behavior in the course of their maturation has been ignored”.[7] Basically, while social scientists are familiar with normative behavior, little is known about the actual behavior of children as they mature. Conflicting Paths looks at over five-hundred narratives dating from 1750 to 1920 to try and follow the actual process of growing up in America and, if it has, how it has changed over time as well as the effects of factors such as class, gender and ethnicity.[7][8]
Undisciplining Knowledge: Interdisciplinarity in the Twentieth Century
Published by Johns Hopkins University Press in 2015. According to the description provided in Google Books:[9] "Interdisciplinarity — or the interrelationships among distinct fields, disciplines, or branches of knowledge in pursuit of new answers to pressing problems — is one of the most contested topics in higher education today. Some see it as a way to break down the silos of academic departments and foster creative interchange, while others view it as a destructive force that will diminish academic quality and destroy the university as we know it... Graff presents readers with the first comparative and critical history of interdisciplinary initiatives in the modern university. Arranged chronologically, the book tells the engaging story of how various academic fields both embraced and fought off efforts to share knowledge with other scholars. It is a story of myths, exaggerations, and misunderstandings, on all sides."
^. Archived from the original on June 10, 2012. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
^Date information sourced from Library of Congress Authorities data, via corresponding WorldCat Identities linked authority file (LAF).
^ abc(PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 June 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
^. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
^Harvey J. Graff, "The Shock of the 'New’ (Histories)': Social Science Histories and Historical Literacies," Social Science History 25.4 (2001) 483-533, quote at p. 490; available in Project Muse
^ abAlexander, Kara (2006). Implicit response: Instructor values and social class in the literacy narrative assignment. ProQuest LLCC. pp. 22–23. ISBN9780549458616. Retrieved 25 September 2011.
^ abMagnússon, Sigurður (1997). "Review". Journal of Social History. 30: 733–735. JSTOR 3789556.
^Graff, Harvey J. (1995). Conflicting Paths: Growing Up in America: Editorial Reviews. ISBN0674160665.
^Graff, Harvey J. (August 2015). Undisciplining Knowledge: Interdisciplinarity in the Twentieth Century. ISBN9781421417455. Retrieved 3 May 2019.
MIsunderstanding Wikipedia, 2022 article by Graff in Inside Higher Ed
January 26, 2023
harvey, graff, born, 1949, comparative, social, historian, well, professor, english, history, ohio, state, university, writings, history, literacy, have, been, published, eight, countries, acknowledged, internationally, contributions, urban, studies, urban, hi. Harvey J Graff born 1949 is a comparative social historian as well as a professor of English and History at Ohio State University 2 His writings on the history of literacy have been published in eight countries and he is acknowledged internationally for his contributions to urban studies and urban history Some of his more notable works include two books entitled The Literacy Myth and Conflicting Paths Growing Up in America 3 Harvey J GraffBorn1949Known forScholarship on social history and the history of literacyAcademic backgroundAcademic workDisciplineUrban historyCultural historyHistory of literacyInterdisciplinarityInstitutionsOhio State UniversityUniversity of Texas at San AntonioLoyola University of Chicago visiting professor Simon Fraser University visiting professor 1 Contents 1 Career 2 Books 2 1 The Literacy Myth 2 2 Conflicting Paths Growing Up in America 2 3 Undisciplining Knowledge Interdisciplinarity in the Twentieth Century 3 Awards 4 References 5 External linksCareer EditThis section needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed November 2022 Learn how and when to remove this template message Harvey J Graff received the Bachelor of Arts degree from Northwestern University in 1970 followed by Master of Arts from The University of Toronto in 1971 and finally his Doctor of Philosophy also from The University of Toronto in 1975 Before coming to his current residence at Ohio State University in 2004 Graff taught at the University of Texas at Dallas from 1975 to 1998 and the University of Texas at San Antonio from 1998 to 2004 4 He was a strong proponent of quantitative social science methods in history He was elected the president of the Social Science History Association 1999 2000 In his presidential address Graff argued that traditional historians had successfully counterattacked against quantification and the innovations of the new social history The case against the new mixed and confused a lengthy list of ingredients including the following history s supposed loss of identity and humanity in the stain of social science the fear of subordinating quality to quantity conceptual and technical fallacies violation of the literary character and biographical base of good history rhetorical and aesthetic concern loss of audiences derogation of history rooted in great men and great events trivialization in general a hodge podge of ideological objections from all directions and a fear that new historians were reaping research funds that might otherwise come to their detractors To defenders of history as they knew it the discipline was in crisis and the pursuit of the new was a major cause 5 Books EditThe Literacy Myth Edit Written in 1979 this book studies 19th century educators who supported the literacy myth as Graff calls it which is the assumption that literacy translates to economic social and cultural success Graff suggests that this myth views literacy as a necessity for success and a means to an economic social or political end His research contradicts this suggesting that connections between schooling and social mobility are not natural ones 6 He goes on to say that reality contradicts inborn assumptions correlating literacy and success 6 Conflicting Paths Growing Up in America Edit The assumption has been made by scholars and the general populace alike that children have followed in the paths marked out for them by adults and the possibility that they developed their own reactions and behavior in the course of their maturation has been ignored 7 Basically while social scientists are familiar with normative behavior little is known about the actual behavior of children as they mature Conflicting Paths looks at over five hundred narratives dating from 1750 to 1920 to try and follow the actual process of growing up in America and if it has how it has changed over time as well as the effects of factors such as class gender and ethnicity 7 8 Undisciplining Knowledge Interdisciplinarity in the Twentieth Century Edit Published by Johns Hopkins University Press in 2015 According to the description provided in Google Books 9 Interdisciplinarity or the interrelationships among distinct fields disciplines or branches of knowledge in pursuit of new answers to pressing problems is one of the most contested topics in higher education today Some see it as a way to break down the silos of academic departments and foster creative interchange while others view it as a destructive force that will diminish academic quality and destroy the university as we know it Graff presents readers with the first comparative and critical history of interdisciplinary initiatives in the modern university Arranged chronologically the book tells the engaging story of how various academic fields both embraced and fought off efforts to share knowledge with other scholars It is a story of myths exaggerations and misunderstandings on all sides Awards EditIn 2001 he was presented the Doctor of Philosophy honoris causa by the University of Linkoping in Sweden for his contributions to scholarship 3 Graff has also received awards from the American Antiquarian Society American Council of Learned Societies Central Mortgage and Housing Corporation National Endowment for the Humanities National Science Foundation The Newberry Library Spencer Foundation Swedish Institute Texas Committee for the Humanities and the Woodrow Wilson Foundation 3 References Edit Harvey J Graff Ohio Eminent Scholar in Literacy Studies Archived from the original on June 10 2012 Retrieved 28 September 2011 Date information sourced from Library of Congress Authorities data via corresponding WorldCat Identities linked authority file LAF a b c Harvey J Graff Brief Biographical Statement PDF Archived from the original PDF on 16 June 2012 Retrieved 25 September 2011 Harvey J Graff Biography 2002 Archived from the original on 6 March 2016 Retrieved 28 September 2011 Harvey J Graff The Shock of the New Histories Social Science Histories and Historical Literacies Social Science History 25 4 2001 483 533 quote at p 490 available in Project Muse a b Alexander Kara 2006 Implicit response Instructor values and social class in the literacy narrative assignment ProQuest LLCC pp 22 23 ISBN 9780549458616 Retrieved 25 September 2011 a b Magnusson Sigurdur 1997 Review Journal of Social History 30 733 735 JSTOR 3789556 Graff Harvey J 1995 Conflicting Paths Growing Up in America Editorial Reviews ISBN 0674160665 Graff Harvey J August 2015 Undisciplining Knowledge Interdisciplinarity in the Twentieth Century ISBN 9781421417455 Retrieved 3 May 2019 External links EditHarvey J Graff at Ohio State University MIsunderstanding Wikipedia 2022 article by Graff in Inside Higher Ed Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Harvey J Graff amp oldid 1121911776, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
