Making history relevant to students by connecting past, present and future: a framework for research

Straaten, Dick van; Wilschut, Arie; Oostdam, Ron

doi:10.1080/00220272.2015.1089938

Cited by 61 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…Epistemological beliefs are not only regarded as an important prerequisite of sophisticated historical thinking. Students with more sophisticated epistemological beliefs are also assumed to be better equipped to participate in a pluralistic, democratic society because those beliefs can help them to develop mature ideas about why multiple accounts or perspectives about the same event can coexist (Barton & Levstik, 2004;Straaten, Wilschut, & Oostdam, 2015;Stradling, 2003). Research has shown that representations of the past can influence how people live their present lives and interpret conflicts (Kolikant & Pollack, 2009).…”

Section: History and Epistemologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Measuring epistemological beliefs in history education: An exploration of naïve and nuanced beliefs

Stoel

Logtenberg

Wansink

et al. 2017

International Journal of Educational Research

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This study investigates a questionnaire that measures epistemological beliefs in history. Participants were 922 exam students. A basic division between naïve and nuanced ideas underpins the questionnaire. However, results show this division oversimplifies the underlying structure. Exploratory factor analysis extracted 5 factors, separating items connected to nature of knowledge from nature of knowing. Furthermore, EFA problematized the distinction between naïve and nuanced ideas on subjectivity. Experts also reported large variance on subjectivity; therefore, these items were excluded from the questionnaire. The final questionnaire contained 3 factors focusing on the objective nature of (1) historical knowledge and (2) historical knowing, and on (3) methodological criteria. Finally, differences between school tracks and relationships between epistemological beliefs, interest and history grade were explored.

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Section: History and Epistemologymentioning

confidence: 99%

Measuring epistemological beliefs in history education: An exploration of naïve and nuanced beliefs

Stoel

Logtenberg

Wansink

et al. 2017

International Journal of Educational Research

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“…When students better understand that the historical narrative is always an interpretation, they may also become aware of the relevance of the subject of history for, among other things, critical participation in society. The study by Van Straaten et al (2016) shows that Dutch secondary school students find history to be a less relevant subject. This can be for various reasons, such as the fact that history is not an important subject for obtaining a diploma, where the focus is on Dutch, English and mathematics.…”

Section: Theoretical Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dutch students’ understanding of the interpretative nature of textbooks when comparing two texts about a significant event in the development of democracy

Houwen

Boxtel

Holthuis

2020

HERJ

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In history education, the deconstruction of narratives is an important skill for students. The skill teaches them to look critically at the offered texts. In this study, we investigated the extent to which students are able to critically analyse the narratives in their history textbooks. To answer this question, we asked 106 students in pre-university education (16–17 years of age) to read and compare two texts – from two different textbooks – about a turning point in the development of the Dutch state and democracy: the introduction of universal suffrage for men and women in 1917–19. One group of students (N=10) worked on the assignment while thinking aloud. We found that most students recognized the author’s voice in the selection of persons and dates and in the attention paid to a particular topic, but that they hardly mentioned recognizing the voice in aspects such as the choice of words or headings. The students who analysed and compared the texts while thinking aloud all indicated after the assignment that they understood that these texts are different interpretations of the same historical development.

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“…Inquiry-based learning, on the one hand requires and feeds reflective thinking, and on the other hand it has the ability to foster deeper understanding, both of which are essential abilities in democratic societies. Historical thinking through inquiry-based learning could enhance general competencies related to identity, democratic citizenship and understanding the human condition ( Barton and Levstik, 2004;Van Straaten et al, 2016).…”

Section: History As a School Subject In Finlandmentioning

confidence: 99%

What is important in history teaching? Student class teachers’ conceptions

Tallavaara

Rautiainen

2020

HERJ

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In Finland, history is taught in comprehensive schools at both primary and secondary levels. In primary schools, teachers are qualified class teachers who study one or two history courses during their teacher education. The amount of history taught in teacher education is limited, but student class teachers have studied history while at comprehensive school and general upper secondary school, and they have lived experience of historical cultures as members of different groups and communities. Thus, they have conceptions of what history teaching in school is, and what it should be. In this article, student class teachers’ conceptions of teaching history were examined using data (n=92) consisting of students’ writings at the beginning of their history studies. A phenomenographic approach was used to identify and characterize different conceptions. The results showed that student class teachers considered understanding of the present to be the most important objective in school history. Based on their own school experiences, they highlighted the significance of the big picture instead of learning scattered facts and details. Students also stressed the importance of the motivation to study history. Their conceptions are similar to the curriculum objectives for history teaching in primary school.

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Making history relevant to students by connecting past, present and future: a framework for research

Cited by 61 publications

References 21 publications

Measuring epistemological beliefs in history education: An exploration of naïve and nuanced beliefs

Measuring epistemological beliefs in history education: An exploration of naïve and nuanced beliefs

Dutch students’ understanding of the interpretative nature of textbooks when comparing two texts about a significant event in the development of democracy

What is important in history teaching? Student class teachers’ conceptions

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