Studying the past the right way builds the skills for a better future

With plans to make history a compulsory subject from grades 10 to 12, and for a new curriculum to go with it, it is perhaps time to evaluate the meaning of history for pupils. The task of a history teacher is a challenging and complex one. If the teacher is serious about the subject and truly understands the nature of history, the responsibilities soon become clear.

Some of the questions and issues young teachers face only become apparent once they recognise the power that history holds. It can be a destructive power, as was the case in Nazi Germany, where history became propaganda that supported pseudoscience. In a positive sense, the subject holds potential value that may promote understanding and acceptance among people with diverse histories.

However, for history to contribute positively in any society, there are several considerations to keep in mind.

If the younger generation looks at the present without knowledge of the past, or, to put it another way, without knowledge of how we arrived at the present, it is very likely that most of them will accept the status quo without question. Many may even no longer seek to create a better present. In short, if we fail to realise what it took to get where we are today, we will be doomed to a future that holds no promise of progress.

If approached with proficiency and objectivity in the classroom, history has the potential to develop skills in pupils that go beyond the memorising of names and dates. With reading and writing skills as the basis, the subject also develops critical analysis, recognising the importance of multiple perspectives as well as the need to interrogate primary sources. If pupils understand why events took place in the past, a glimpse of human nature is revealed to them, and in turn a greater capacity for openness and acceptance.

History is about looking at the past without imposing contemporary values on past events. Historians endeavour to understand the past without judging those who were there. For pupils to truly understand history, they must therefore see the past in historical context. Without context, the likelihood of condemnation increases, leading to a cycle of blame.

South Africa is not unique in grappling with a contested and troubled past. In the US, historians also debated the purpose of history, asking: “What history should our children learn . . . the patriotism, heroism and ideals of the nation [or] the injustices, defeats, and hypocrisies of its leaders and dominant classes?” It was in his book Historical Thinking and other Unnatural Acts that Sam Wineburg suggested the subject has the potential to humanise pupils by making them aware of the complexities of the past without pointing out the so-called victors or vanquished.

In South Africa, the debate is about Africanising the curriculum, but a few years ago in Australia, role-players there bemoaned the dearth of international history in the curriculum. Curriculum development is a complex matter, just as history is evidently more than the sum of its parts.

Following on the idea of history as a nuanced subject, it goes without saying that historical events require careful analysis. If pupils are able to critically analyse the past, the chances of them blindly believing everything they read and see diminishes. In becoming critical thinkers, pupils are better able to distinguish between that which is significant, that which has meaning, and that which is fake.

In a globalising world, historical events, whether they took place in Africa or in Asia, should be seen within a global context. No history can be taught, or understood, in isolation.

In addition, it is crucial that pupils and teachers recognise that there are as many points of view on the reasons for and consequences of historical events as there are historians. As such, pupils should be given the opportunity to analyse diverse perspectives in a curriculum that reflects the nature of history. A curriculum that indicates academic rigour goes beyond a list of topics.

The act of merely recalling past events holds no relevance for the present. If teachers continue to present history at schools in this way, it will become — or continue to be — a subject that is diminishing in importance on the one hand and seen as a political tool on the other. Developing historical thinking skills and thereby the capacity to better understand history means pupils will not become indoctrinated with a specific political ideology or agenda. They will instead be offered the ability to transfer their skills to the present, enabling them to evaluate their world without the influence of propaganda.