TCR SERVICES

 
TCR SERVICES

High School students planning to go to college should know that they will face reading lists of nonfiction books and be asked to write research papers. The vast majority of American public high school students are not asked to read a single complete nonfiction book or to write a term paper before graduation. But they suspect that the safe spaces of fiction readings and personal writing will not prepare them well enough for college. In many cases their teachers have neither the inclination nor the time to help them with History research papers, and while some students, such as many of those published in The Concord Review since 1987, have set up Independent Study programs which let them write such papers, others may want to make use of the services we offer to serious secondary students of History:

One: The Concord Review [1987] (tcr.org) can provide students with a fine variety of examples from the History research papers published by >1,400 high school students from 46 states and 43 other countries in 129 issues since 1987. This journal remains the only quarterly in the world for the academic History research papers of secondary students. These papers have served many students as useful models of research and writing to inspire and guide them in their own reading, research and writing. Find many examples at tcr.org/bookstore. A recent author wrote: “The writing of this longer [8,000 words] paper was the most academically challenging project I’ve ever taken on. I have never before devoted so much time and energy to historical research. Writing for the Review required a level of commitment to the process of research and a standard of scholarship that I had never been exposed to at school.” (Yale Class of 2025)

Two: The TCR History Camp [2014] is an intensive online workshop in historical research and writing for secondary students. In each 2-week session (summer, fall, winter, and spring), 2 experienced instructors will coach students, all working remotely, to compose a first draft of a History research paper on a topic of their choice. Contact: steven.lee@tcr.org (Manager of the TCR Summer Program). tcr.org/summer.

Three: The TCR Academic Coaching Service [2014] matches high school students working on a History research paper online with TCR Authors now at or recently graduated from Chicago, Columbia, Harvard, MIT, Princeton, Stanford and Yale. Personal advice and guidance from a successful older peer (many are Emerson Prize winners) can be inspiring and productive for secondary students struggling with serious term papers. Contact Jessica Li:  jessica.feiya.li@gmail.com (Manager of the TCR Academic Coaches). tcr.org/coaches.

Four: The National Writing Board [1998] provides a unique independent assessment service for the History research papers of high school students. Our reports by two Senior Readers now average five pages and may be sent to college admissions officers. These papers are evaluated against an independent academic expository writing standard developed by The Concord Review. Our assessment service has been endorsed by many highly selective colleges, including Amherst, Dartmouth, Duke, Harvard, Michigan, Middlebury, Notre Dame, Princeton, Spelman, Stanford, the University of Virginia, and Yale. Inquire at tcr.org/nwb.

Five: TCR History Seminar [2021] provides a forum for 13 to 15 year-olds to read and discuss History books. Very few U.S. students are ever asked to read a nonfiction book before they finish high school, and those that do are quite often not reading History books. The goal of the History Seminar is to give middle school students an introduction to History books, and a chance to enjoy them. It is our goal to create History buffs who want to read for the pleasure of discovering the past and adding both to their academic vocabulary and their knowledge of civilization. Contact: steven.lee@tcr.org

Six: The National History Club [2002] was founded to encourage the reading, writing, discussion and enjoyment of History. It serves as a national clearinghouse for History Club chapters from around the country to share ideas and activities with each other. Students and teachers are inspired through this active network and members of History Club chapters participate in local and national programs. The NHC provides chapters with resources and services that helps them increase the activity and impact of their History Club. To date, more than 600 schools in 44 states have joined the NHC and there are more than 18,000 student members. Join today at nationalhistoryclub.org.

TCR authors have gone on to Brown(35), University of Chicago(44), Columbia(33), Cornell(23), Dartmouth(27), Harvard(156), Oxford(19), Pennsylvania(32), Princeton(78), Stanford(101), Yale(129), and a number of other fine institutions, including Amherst, Berkeley, Bowdoin, Bryn Mawr, Caltech, Cambridge, Carnegie Mellon, Duke, Emory, Johns Hopkins, McGill, Michigan, MIT, New York University, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Reed, Rice, Smith, Swarthmore, Trinity, Tufts, Virginia, Washington University, Wellesley, and Williams.

Will Fitzhugh, Founder
The Concord Review [1987]
730 Boston Post Road, Suite 24
Sudbury, Massachusetts 01776 USA
fitzhugh@tcr.org; tcr.org/subscribe