The Early Novels Database (END) draws on University of Pennsylvania's Rare Book & Manuscript Library’s extensive collection of fiction in English published between 1660 and 1830, ranging from the canonical to the largely unknown. As Rachel Buurma, Anna Levine and Richard Li discuss, the project uses twenty-first-century technology and descriptive bibliography to enhance research access to the collection. As a collaborative effort of librarians, information technology specialists, faculty from Swarthmore College and University of Pennsylvania, and Swarthmore College undergraduate researchers, the database--when finished--will greatly enhance the writing of new histories of the novel. 

What happens when the discussion board goes from being just an assignment to a springboard for intellectual community? Foreseeing many benefits to cultivating discussion among his English students, Ed Gallagher worked to develop frameworks to articulate why discussion is not only central to the learning process in the classroom but also beyond its walls. A higher level of critical analysis, reflection, and a synthesis of multiple perspectives turned class discussions into artful conversations.