Historical Research

Definition

•Historical research is the type of researchthat examines past events orcombinations of events to arrive at anaccount of what has happened in the past.

Why would a person want to conduct historical research?

•Uncover the unknown,

•Answer questions,

• Identify the relationship that the past has to the present,

•Record and evaluate accomplishments of individuals, agencies, or institutions,

•Aid in understanding the culture in which we live.

How can historical research tell us anything about the present?

•We usually will see that what we do today is specifically rooted in the past.

•Understanding this can add perspective on how we examine current events and educational practices.

What type of information is used when conducting a historical research study?

Information in documents, records, photographs, relics,and interviews.

•Documents and records

•Oral histories

•Relics

What type of information is used when conducting a historical research study?

Documents and recordsinclude, for example, written or printed

materials such as diplomas, cartoons, diaries,memoirs, newspapers, photos, yearbooks,memos, periodicals, reports, files, attendancerecords, census reports, budgets, maps, andtests.

What type of information is used when conducting a historical research study?

Oral historiesis another very useful type of information. An

oral history is what you obtain when youinterview a person who has had direct or indirectexperience with or knowledge of the chosentopic.

What type of information is used when conducting a historical research study?

Relicsare also used and include, for example,

articles of clothing, buildings, books, architecturalplans, desks, or any other object that mightprovide useful information about the past.

What is the difference between a primary and secondary source?

•A primary source is an original, first hand record or account or artifact that has survived from the past; it has direct involvement with the event being investigated.

•A secondary source is an account of the past created after the event or created from primary sources.

What is the difference between external criticism and internal criticism?

External criticismrefers to determining the authenticity,

validity, or trustworthiness of the source (to seeif the source is what it claims to be).

What is the difference between external criticism and internal criticism?

Internal criticismrefers to the determination of the reliability

or accuracy of the information contained in the source; it is important for determining what a good interpretation is of the information contained in the source.

What is meant by positive criticism?

•Positive criticism

is a strategy for internal criticism and it refers to making sure that you understand the meaning conveyed in the source.

What is negative criticism, and how does a person conducting a historical study achieve

negative criticism?

•Negative criticism

refers to establishing the reliability orauthenticity and accuracy of the content ofdocuments and other sources of information.You must determine if the content in thedocument or source is accurate.

Negative criticism is achieved by using the following three heuristics:

1. Corroboration

2. Sourcing

3. Contextualization

Negative criticism is achieved by using the following three heuristics:

1. Corroboration

- comparing documents to each other to seeif they provide the same information and lead tothe same conclusions.

Negative criticism is achieved by using the following three heuristics:

2. Sourcing

– identifying the author, date of creation, place of creation, or other information that identifies the source.

Negative criticism is achieved by using the following three heuristics:

3. Contextualization

– identifying when and where the event took place and the context in which it took place.