Introduction to the Class What is History? Introduction to the Class

What is History For? (Click on Video Below) The concept of history plays a fundamental role in human thought. It invokes notions of human agency, change, the role of material circumstances in human affairs, and the putative meaning of historical events. It raises the possibility of “learning from history.” And it suggests the possibility of better understanding ourselves in the present, by understanding the forces, choices, and circumstances that brought us to our current situation

Definition: History Interpreting artifacts and information from the past and determining its impact on later events leading up to the present History is all about Interpretation As students of history, we keep trying to learn new facts to determine how accurate our previous interpretation of history is in order to better understand how we got to the present

What do these quotes say about history? Do you agree? Why?

So…….What are we trying to interpret? What does it mean to be “Objective?” And why is it important? Social Studies is a Social Science with the goal of applying scientific laws (Observation, documentation) to better understand man as accurately as possible and why (s)he does the things (s)he does. YES NO! NO

What does a Good Student of History Do? Historians conceptualize, describe, explain, and interpret events and circumstances of the past. They sketch out ways of representing the complex activities and events of the past; they explain and interpret significant outcomes; and they base their findings on evidence in the present that bears upon facts about the past. Their accounts need to be grounded on the evidence of the available historical record; and their explanations and interpretations require that the historian arrive at hypotheses about social causes and cultural meanings.

Interpreting Sources https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/protests-against- removing-confederate-monuments-are-not-really-about- history/2017/05/12/8d2905d8-3732-11e7-b4ee- 434b6d506b37_story.html?utm_term=.3cf3d64c3097 USA Today “Confederate History Month” proposed in Georgia https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2017/03/29/confederate- history-month-proposed-georgia/99781162/ https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the- fix/wp/2017/05/04/donald-trump-says-hes-a-fan-of-history-but-he- doesnt-seem-to-trust-historians/?utm_term=.89cae722ecff VOX- https://www.vox.com/the-big- idea/2017/8/18/16165160/confederate-monuments-history- charlottesville-white-supremacy Videos: Trump Defends Charlottesville Statement: http://www.cnn.com/videos/politics/2017/08/15/donald- trump-entire-charlottesville-trump-tower-q-a-sot.cnn History.com How the U.S. Got So Many Confederate Monuments http://www.history.com/news/how-the-u-s-got-so-many- confederate-monuments CNN Zakaria reckoning with America’s Past http://www.cnn.com/2017/08/20/us/fareed-zakaria- germany-history-cnntv/index.html https://www.economist.com/news/books-and-arts/21583609-only-few-countries-are-teaching-children-how-think-best-and-brightest Foreign Policy- End of History is the Beginning of Tragedy http://foreignpolicy.com/2017/05/29/the-end-of-history-is-the-birth-of-tragedy/?utm_source=Sailthru PBS New Hour- Why is America Wrestlign with Confederate History http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/america-wrestling-confederate-monuments/