Introduction to History

Course Title: Teaching of History

Course Code: TST-408
Course Incharge: Ms.Sadia Saleem

(Phase I)

Learning Objectives
After the completion of the lesson students are able to,
 Understand the concept of History
 Explain the nature of History
 Elaborate the aims and objectives of Teaching History

Introduction
History is often said to be the “Queen” or “Mother” of the Social Sciences. The term history is
drived from the Greek word “historia” meaning “ Information or Inquiry” conducted to find the
truth. The other meaning is “What has actually passed or happened”.
History is the study of life in society in the past, in all its aspect, in relation to present
developments and future hopes. It is the story of man in time, an inquiry into the past based on
evidence. Indeed, evidence is the raw material of history teaching and learning. It is an Inquiry
into what happened in the past, when it happened, and how it happened. It is an inquiry into the
inevitable changes in human affairs in the past and the ways these changes affect, influence or
determine the patterns of life in the society. History is, or should be an attempt to re-think the
past

“History is not simply information regarding the affairs of the king who have passed awat but a
science which explains the intellect and furnishes the wise with examples” Tarikh-i-Daudi

Nature of History

A study of the present in the light of the past:

The present has evolved out of the past. Modern history enables us to understand how society
has come to its present form so that one may intelligently interpret the sequence of events. The
causal relationships between the selected happenings are unearthed that help in revealing the
nature of happenings and framing of general laws
History is the study of man:

History deals with man’s struggle through the ages. History is not static. By selecting
“innumerable biographies” and presenting their lives in the appropriate social context and the
ideas in the human context, we understand the sweep of events. It traces the fascinating story of
how man has developed through the ages, how man has studied to use and control his
environment and how the present institutions have grown out of the past.

History is concerned with man in time:

It deals with a series of events and each event occurs at a given point in time. Human history, in
fact, is the process of human development in time. It is time which affords a perspective to
events and lends a charm that brightens up the past.

History is concerned with man in space:

The interaction of man on environment and vice versa is a dynamic one. History describes about
nations and human activities in the context of their physical and geographical environment. Out
of this arise the varied trends in the political, social, economic and cultural spheres of man’s
activities and achievements.

Objective record of happenings:

Every precaution is taken to base the data on original sources and make them free from
subjective interpretation. It helps in clear understanding of the past and enables us to take well
informed decisions.

Multisided:

All aspects of the life of a social group are closely interrelated and historical happenings cover
all these aspects of life, not limited only to the political aspect that had so long dominated
history.
History is a dialogue between the events of the past and progressively emerging future
ends:

History is a dialogue between the events of the past and progressively emerging future ends. The
historian’s interpretation of the past, his selection of the significant and the relevant events,
evolves with the progressive emergence of new goals. The general laws regulating historical
happenings may not be considered enough; attempts have to be made to predict future
happenings on the basis of the laws.

Not only narration but also analysis:

The selected happenings are not merely narrated; the causal relationships between them are
properly unearthed. The tracing of these relationships lead to the development of general laws
that are also compared and contrasted with similar happenings in other social groups to improve
the reliability and validity of these laws.

Continuity and coherence are the necessary requisites of history:

History carries the burden of human progress as it is passed down from generation to generation,
from society to society, justifying the essence of continuity.

Relevant:

In the study of history only those events are included which are relevant to the understanding of
the present life.

Comprehensiveness:

According to modern concept, history is not confined to one period or country or nation. It also
deals with all aspects of human life-political, social, economic, religious, literary, aesthetic and
physical, giving a clear sense of world unity and world citizenship

Aims of Teaching History

History aims at helping students to understand the present existing social, political, religious and
economic conditions of the people. The present is in fact the child of the past. It is a development
of the past. Without the knowledge of history we cannot have the background of our religion,
customs institutions, administration and so on

The teaching of history helps the students to explain the present, to analyze the cause and effect
relationship between the past and the present is lively presented in the history. History thus helps
us to understand the present day problems both at the national and international level accurately
and objectively.

 To promote Self-Understanding.
 To give Proper Conception of time, space and society.
 To enable the student to assess the value and achievements of their own age.
 To teach tolerance.
 To develop storehouse of wisdom.
 To develop memory, imagination and reasoning power.

Objectives of Teaching History

Teaching of history enables the pupils to achieve various instructional objectives in an

hierarchical manner. These objectives are,

1. Knowledge
2. Understanding
3. Critical thinking
4. Practical skills
5. Interests
6. Attitudes relating to historical matters.

(1) Knowledge
The pupil acquires knowledge of various terms, concepts, events, ideals, problems personalities
and principles related to the study of history. They are,

 Recall facts, events, years and terms etc.

 Recognize facts, events, concepts, years etc.
 Read information presented in different forms, and
 Show information on maps, charts, diagrams etc.

(2) Understanding:

The pupils develop understanding of terms, facts, events, years, principles etc. related to the
study of history. They,

 Classify facts, events, terms, concepts etc.

 Compare and contrast the events, trends, concepts etc.
 Discriminate between the significant and the silly matters,
 Illustrated events, principles by citing examples,
 Identify relationship between causes and effects etc.
 Detect errors in the statement and rectify,
 Arrange facts etc. in a particular known order, and Interpret the maps, charts etc. from the
source of history.

(3) Critical thinking

The pupils develop the ability of critical and logical thinking. They:

 Identify the problems

 Analyze the problems
 Select relevant facts, principles etc.
 Establish relationships
 Advance arguments in support of or against an issue;
 Draw inferences and conclusions
  Verify the inference and Evaluates.

(4) Practical Skill

To develop practical skills helpful in the study and understanding of historical events. They:

 Draw historical maps, charts, diagrams etc.

 Prepare models, tools etc.

(5) Interests

 To develop interests in the study of history and activities relating to history. They:
 Collect ancient arts, old coins and other historical materials;
 Participate in historical drama and historical occasions;
 Visit places of historical interests, archaeological sites, museums and archives;
 Read historical documents, maps, charts etc.
 Play active roles in activities of the historical organizations and associations; and Write
articles on historical topics.

(6) Attitudes

To develop favorable attitudes and them:

 Show respect towards other peoples, ways of life, ideas etc

 Know about other religions and faiths
 Establish friendship with other peoples
 Practice the noble religions and their principles
 Cooperate with others in social and historical activities
 Appreciate cultural differences; and Believe in equality for man irrespective of caste,
class, creed, color and religion.
References

Kochhar, S. K. (1984). Teaching of history. Sterling Publishers Pvt. Ltd.

Makriyanni, C., & Psaltis, C. (2007). The Teaching of History and Reconcilliation. Cyprus
Review, 19(1), 43-69.

Bourdillon, H. (Ed.). (2013). Teaching history. Routledge.

Sakki, I., & Pirttilä-Backman, A. M. (2019). Aims in teaching history and their epistemic
correlates: a study of history teachers in ten countries. Pedagogy, Culture & Society, 27(1), 65-
85.

Buckwald, J. (1968). Aims in Teaching World History. The Social Studies, 59(4), 164-166.

Cooper, H. (2014). The teaching of history in primary schools: Implementing the revised national
curriculum. Routledge.