Understanding History
Course Description
The purpose of this course is to invite students to go deeper and make their own connections between academics and the world beyond the classroom. This course provides students with an opportunity to gain knowledge and examine how we as humans can study history/current events while acknowledging our biases, the changes in cultural norms, understanding why people act as they do, and the context of the event. In the process, they will likely need to think critically about everything from the reliability and biases of sources to the echoes of history in events unfolding today.
Contingency
Learn this: I will learn how to connect individuals decisions and how they reverberate throughout the world and future.
Do this: I will create a project that demonstrates what I have learned and shows I know:
The interconnectedness of the world around them.
The role of past, present, and future in decision-making
The roles of individuals in changing the world
Grow from: I will respond to teacher feedback.
Context
Learn this: I will learn the importance of using perseverance and understanding bias when studying history.
Do this: I will create a project that demonstrates what I have learned and shows I know:
The importance of primary documents when studying history
That an idea might require more thought or more research
The understanding of the norms and values of the time period being studied
Grow from: I will respond to teacher feedback.
Causality
Learn this: I will learn that every historical development was initiated (or caused) by developments that came before.
Do this: I will create a project that demonstrates what I have learned and shows I know:
To develop persuasive explanations of events and processes based on logical interpretations of evidence.
To understand that not all people studying history will come to the same conclusion regarding the causation of certain events.
Grow from: I will respond to teacher feedback.
Complexity
Learn this: I will learn that historical events are interrelated and this interrelatedness creates complex interactions.
Do this: I will create a project that demonstrates what I have learned and shows I know how to:
Recognize multiple opinions and perspectives of a single event
Explain my perspective on the issue, and identify my own assumptions or biases, and I can conduct further research to address these gaps and expand my point of view.
Grow from: I will respond to teacher feedback.