WAYS HOW TO TEACH HISTORY IN POSTMODERN ERA Pavel Hanes Slovakia

Critical Thinking For students For teachers …to be skeptical enough to look for more than one account of an event or life For teachers …to understand the postmodern challenge to the discipline of history Three parts of the following presentation Assessment of the sources (the “what” of history) Understanding of the forces (the “why” of history) Learning the moral of the story (the “so what?” of history)

Aims of Christian teaching Education in general [Whitehead] The essence of education is that it be religious. …A religious education is an education which inculcates duty and reverence. Teaching history [Nietzsche] …I demand that man should above all learn to live and should employ history only in the service of the life he has learned to live

Postmodernism [Eagleton] “The word postmodernism generally refers to a form of contemporary culture, whereas the term postmodernity alludes to a specific historical period. Postmodernity is a style of thought which is suspicious of classical notions of truth, reason, identity and objectivity, of the idea of universal progress or emancipation, of single frameworks, grand narratives or ultimate grounds of explanation.“ (The Illusions of Postmodernism)

The “what” of secular view of history Troeltsch’s “three principles” (Poythress)

The “what” of Christian view of history Christian reply to Troeltsch

The “why’s” of a Christian view of history

The “why’s” of a secular view of history

The “why’s” of a postmodern view of history

The goal of history “So what?” question from the students

Workshop task Use the above principles to explain the beginnings of Christianity from a secular view from a Christian view from a postmodern view

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