December 10 th (2010): PD related to the Modern History 112 DRAFT curriculum Agenda: Acknowledgments Timeline PD Videos Historical Thinking (ppt) Preparation time/feedback
December 10 th (2010): PD related to the Modern History 112 DRAFT curriculum Agenda: Acknowledgments Timeline PD Videos Historical Thinking (ppt) Preparation time/feedback
December 10 th (2010): PD related to the Modern History 112 DRAFT curriculum Agenda: Acknowledgments Timeline PD Videos Historical Thinking (ppt) Preparation time/feedback
Historical Thinking: Key Concepts & Practical Applications
Six Concepts of Historical Thinking: Significance Evidence Cause and Consequence Continuity and Change Historical Perspective-Taking The Ethical dimension Seixas, P., & Clark, P., (Ed.) (2006) Teaching about Historical Thinking. UBC, Canada: The Critical Thinking Consortium.
Significance Consequences (resulting in change) Prominence of the event at the time Occupies a key place in a meaningful narrative Revealing –Does the event explain something about later events or the present?
Evidence Problem: The past is gone How do we know about the past? How do we decide what to believe about the past? Primary and secondary sources make history more tangible for students.
Evidence: How you might begin… Students write a history of the first day of school. In small groups, they compare their histories – Why are there differences? They all experienced the first day together – shouldn’t the histories all be the same? Why do they think other students wrote histories different than theirs? Discuss this with students – introduce the idea of “perspective” Could the same thing happen when history books (and textbooks) are written? Why? What does this tell us about historical accounts? (Interpretation is key) Bain, R. B. (2005). "They thought the world was flat?": Applying the principles of how people learn in teaching high school history. In J. Bransford & S. Donovan (Eds.), How Students Learn: History, Mathematics, and Science in the Classroom (pp ). Washington: The National Academies Press.
Continuity & Change Change and continuity are on-going and ever present Change can occur at different rates Change and continuity can be both positive and negative (e.g. progress & decline) Comparisons can be made between points of history and between the past and the present
Cause and Consequence Events have a myriad of different and often unappreciated causes Prior events may have no causal influence on subsequent events - Post Hoc, Ergo Propter Hoc (after this, therefore because of this ) Looking for broad underlying factors is as important (or more important) than identifying immediate particular causes Actions have unintended consequences
Historical Perspective-Taking Presentism is the antithesis of historical perspective Historical perspective is concerned with understanding the prevailing norms of the time more than it is adopting a particular person’s point of view There are diverse historical perspectives on any given event in the past Adopting an historical perspective requires suspending moral judgment.
The Ethical Dimension There is value in withholding moral judgments until adequate information has been acquired Determining cause is different from assigning responsibility
Works Cited: Centre for the Study of Historical Consciousness. (n.d.). Benchmarks of Historical Thinking. Retrieved October 25, 2010, from Centre for the Study of Historical Consciousness. (n.d.). Concepts. Retrieved October 25, 2010, from Peck, C. (2009). Taking Risks. Retrieved October 25, 2010, from: A8B1011.tomcat A8B1011.tomcat1 Seixas, P. (2006). Benchmarks of historical thinking: A framework for assessment in Canada. UBC: Centre for the Study of Historical Consciousness. Case, R. (Ed.). (2006). Tools for historical understanding: Teaching about historical thinking. UBC: The Critical Thinking Consortium.
December 10 th (2010): PD related to the Modern History 112 DRAFT curriculum Agenda: Acknowledgments Timeline PD Videos Historical Thinking (ppt) Preparation time/feedback