using big ideas to make history relevant delta 23 10-2015

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“Purpose and relevance are something that the iGeneration students demand. They want to create real

products and share them with a wider audience.” (Sheldrake and Watkin, “Teaching the iGeneration”, History Teacher)

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Using Big Ideas to Make History Relevant

Tom Morton

(GuyLafleur64 - www.slideshare.net)

Keywords: Delta, Heritage Fairs, big ideas, history, relevance

http://www.slideshare.net

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www.bcheritagefairs.ca

Learning Intentions:

• I have a better understanding of how the big ideas of historicalthinking can help respond to the challenges of teaching history.

• I have a better understanding of how Heritage Fairs can do the same.

• I am curious to learn more.

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References:

historicalthinking.ca/

www.nelson.com/

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tc2.ca/history.php

www.bcheritagefairs.ca/enriching-heritage-fairs/

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The Fourfold Challenge to TeachingHistory: Purpose

I think that it is in the curriculum becausepeople need to learnabout it.

If you want to do something to do withhistory it is important but if you don’t I don’t know.

I don’t know or care.

I don’t know, but it helps you on quiz shows and pub quizzes.

They don’t tell us why.

Because it gives you an idea about human nature, the same as citzenship, and provides a basis for understanding the way the world istoday.

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The Fourfold Challenge: Connection

• Canadians and Their Pasts, a telephone survey of 3,419 adult residents of Canada found that family history was seen by Canadians as by far the most important aspect of the past and "'autobiographical memory,' a personal version of history is a first step in the development of a 'usable past.'” Yet beyond the primary grades it has not a feature of provincial curriculum. The new curriculum gives some flexibility.

• Student understanding is often “piecemeal and confused”, unconnected to the big ideas in history or a larger narrative.

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Fourfold Challenge: knowledge

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Fourfold Challenge: Engagement

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The Big Ideas: Historical Thinking Concepts

To think historically, students need to be able to:• Establish historical significance• Use primary source evidence• Identify continuity and change• Analyze cause and consequence• Take historical perspectives, and• Understand the ethical

dimension of historical interpretations.

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How historical thinking can make history purposeful, coherent, and engaging?

• Students understand the purpose of a topic, project, or learning goal through exploration of concepts of historical significance and cause and consequence.

• Students connect their personal and local history to larger narratives and see the connections amongst events over time — the “big picture” of change and continuity.

• Students develop curiosity about the past and through the concept of evidence follow that curiosity.

• Students study the ethical dimension, questions of fairness that they care about and consider how we should respond to past sacrifices and historic wrongs.

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Introduction to the Concept of Evidence and Inquiry: I Left a Trace

1. Jot down everything thatyou have done in the last 24 hours.

(that would be appropriate for discussion.)

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2. Make a list of traces that mighthave been left from your life duringthe past 24 hours.

3. Check ✓ those that were likely

to have been preserved.

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1. How well could a biographer 50 years from now write the story of your 24 hours based on the traces you left? How much of what happened would be left out? What aspects of the story might the biographer miss?

2. Where else could he or she turn for evidence?

3. How could readers of the biography know if it was an accurate account?

4. What does this exercise tell us about the challenges historians face when writing histories?

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“the past as a series of events is utterly gone . . . some remnants remain like litter from a picnic, but these material remains never speak for themselves. In fact they are inert traces until someone asks a question that turns them into evidence.”

- Joyce Appleby, “The Power of History”

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The Problem: The past is gone. We do not have direct access to it.

How do we know what we know about the past?

What stories should we believe?

Concept: Evidence

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Working with traces from the past and the concept of evidence has the potential to build curiosity for a more in depth inquiry such as a Heritage Fairproject and develop useable habits or skills.

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The Life of a World War One Fighter Pilot: What does the book tell us about the life of the

people in the photographs?

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Elements of Evidence

• History is intepretation based on inferences made from primary sources.

• Asking good questions about a source can turn itinto evidence.

• Interpretation also involves sourcing: inferring the purpose, values, and worldview of a source’s creator.

• A source should be analyzed in relation to itscontext.

• Inferences should always be corroborated—checkedagainst other sources (primary and secondary).

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Experts do those things, but only because their mental toolbox enables them to do so. The only path to expertise as far as anyone knows involves long, focused practice.

(Daniel Willingham, Why Don’t Students Like School?)

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Visual Analysis: Inferencing

What can we infer from this trace of the past about the historical context, the photographic situation, and the situation of Blacks in Victoria at this time?

Victoria Pioneer Rifle Corps. Photographer: UNDETERMINED Date: [186-] Photo C-06124 courtesy BC Archives

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Victoria Pioneer Rifle Corps, also known at the time as Sir James Douglas' Coloured Regiment.Photographer: UNDETERMINED Date: [186-] Photo C-06124 courtesy BC Archives

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No Frills Steps in an Inquiry:

• Kindle curiosity – « some perplexity, confusion, or doubt » (John Dewey)

• Establish some knowledge base

• For Heritage Fairs: Decide on a topic to explore

• Develop question(s)

• Pose first hypothesis and reflect on certainty

• Explore further evidence

• Refine hypothesis and so on as time and interestpermit

• Present to an audience

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Context

• The Fraser River and Cariboo Gold Rushes (1858 –1862) attracted tens of thousands of mostlyAmerican miners.

• Governor James Douglas invited free Blacks living in San Francisco to settle in Victoria and severalhundred did so. They soon began farming and opening various businesses.

• The colony of British Columbia was formed in 1858.

• In 1859 a dispute between Britain and the United States over possession of the San Juan Islands (in what is now the Salish Sea) led to the Pig War.

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Question Generation 1 – Question Formation Technique (AKA: Brainstorming)

• Ask as many questions as you can.

• Do not stop to discuss, judge, or answer the questions.

• Write down every question exactly as it is stated.

• Change any statement into a question.

(Rothstein and Santana, Make Just One Change)

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Question Generation 2: Brainstorming with Prompts

1. Brainstorm a list of at least 12 questions about the topic or source. Use these question-starters to help you think of interesting questions:

– Why…?

– How…?

– How is this connected to…?

– What happened as a result of…?

– What did… think about…?

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2. Review the brainstormed list and star the questions that seem most interesting and important. Then, select one or two starred questions and be ready to present these to the class.

3. Reflect: How do you know you have a good question? Would it make a good Heritage Fairs project? What possible answer do you have to your question? Where could you go to learn more and test your answer?

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Criteria for Good Inquiry Questions

• They are worth answering (lead to deeperunderstanding of history; authentic)

• They are broadly engaging (for teacher inquiries)

• Students care about them – they see the purposein answering them

• They can be answered, though the answer maybe contested or difficult (and this may needteacher support if this is the case)

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Ways to Support Students to GenerateQuestions:• Look at models, e.g., www.bcheritagefairs.ca

portfolio

• Supply prompts

• Use engaging sources to build curiosity

• Brainstorm questions

• Give or create criteria for powerful questions

• Make a Wonder Wall of Questions

• Plan for peer and teacher feedback

• Practise with small inquiries

• Have students choose one question; you chooseanother

http://www.bcheritagefairs.ca

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Why was this photograph of the Pioneer Rifles taken?

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Reflection on Certainty: Clothesline

www.thinkinghistory.co.uk -© Ian Dawson 2009

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How certain are you about your answer/hypothesis?

UNCERTAIN?

CERTAIN?

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How certain are you about your hypothesis?

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What words do students need to use?

MaybeNot surePossiblyPerhapsMost likelyWhat phrases?

This source suggests…This photo confirms the idea that… I chose these two pictures to show…

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Corroboration with further evidence:

Sophia Cracroft, niece and travelling companion of Lady Jane Franklin, who was visiting Victoria in 1861, wrote in a letter:

"At 5 o'clock the Bishop came to be present at the visits of the coloured people who had asked my Aunt to see them… The first was Mr. Gibbs, a most respectable merchant who is rising fast. His manner is exceedingly good, & his way of speaking quite refined. He is not quite black, but his hair is I believe short & crisp. Three other men arrived after him … (T)hey were the Captain & other officers of a Coloured Rifle Corps, & the Captain proceeded to speak very feelingly of the prejudices existing here even, against their colour.

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He said they knew it was because of the strong American element which entered into the community, which however they hoped one day to see overpowered by the English one: -that they had come here hoping to find that true freedom which could be enjoyed only under English privileges...

… They naturally detest America, & this Rifle corps has been formed by them really with the view of resisting American aggression, such as this San Juan alarm, still pending.

As he went out, the Captain said 'Depend upon it, Madam, if Uncle Sam goes too far, we shall be able to give a good account of ourselves.'"

(cited in Crawford Killian, Go Do Some Great Thing: the Black Pioneers of British Columbia. (1978) Vancouver: Douglas and McIntyre, 78.)

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• Does this new context support yourunderstanding, challenge it, or expand it?

• What other questions do you have about the photographic situation, the Victoria Pioneer Rifles, or the position of Blacks in Victoria at thistime?

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Concept: Historical Significance

The problem: We can’t remember or learn or

cover everything that ever happened. How do we decide what is important to learn about the past?

“Historical significance”: the principles behind the selection of what and who should be remembered, researched, taught and learned about the past.

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What was the most significant event in the history of the Downtown Eastside?

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Why remember these forgotten streets?

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Seixas and Morton, The Big Six HistoricalThinking Concepts (Nelson, 2013)

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Should the Victoria Pioneer Rifles be in ourtextbooks? On what grounds?

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Working with historical significance: Diamond Ranking

Most

Least

43Pioneer Rifles

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Who were the most historicallysignificant during British Columbia’sGold Rushes?

• James Douglas

• Amelia Douglas

• Matthew Begbie

• Chief Spintlum

• Royal Engineers• Victoria Pioneer

Rifles• Hurdy Gurdy Girls• Billy Barker

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Question Stems for HistoricalSignificance (aka: so-what or who-cares questions:

• What was so special about X?• Why should everyone remember X?• Does X deserve to be famous?• Why was X forgotten?

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Change and Continuity

“Come on, Bart. History can be fun. It’s like an

amusement park except instead of rides, you get

to memorize dates.”

—Marge Simpson in “Margical History Tour,” an episodeof The Simpsons that aired on December 22, 2004

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Making History Meaningfulby Building Connections: Exploring Continuity and Change through EnhancedTimelines

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Human Timeline

• Begin with events, then add dates, people and time periods. Ask them how they will represent periods or events that stretch over time such as residential schools.

• Use cards, posters or tabards with visual images.• If you have one big timeline, have students stand

in a slight crescent so everyone can see everyone else. A straight line doesn’t work for visibility.

• Try two timelines face to face so students can compare.

(adapted from Ian Dawson, Thinking History)

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• If you don’t have enough students in your class use chairs or stuffed toys to make up the numbers or to increase the length of the line.

• Finally, stick the whole thing on the wall (with blu-tack, so you can take it down and get them to do it again in a few weeks – "Oh look kids, the cleaners have taken down our timeline – we need to put it up again.”)

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Timeline Story Telling

• As with the human timeline but in a small group, give students assorted cards with events, people, and trends to place in chronological order. Add dates.

• Ask them to choose X number of events, people, and trends to construct a story; ask them to add some more to expand the story.

• Compare stories amongst groups. Treat these as hypotheses to be investigated further and retold later.

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Understanding Continuity and Change

1. Continuity and change are interwoven.

2. Change is a process with varying paces and patterns.

3. Progress and decline are ways of evaluatingchange. Progress for one people may be declinefor another.

4. Periodization helps us organize our thinkingabout continuity and change.

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Inquiry Questions on Continuity and Change

• A flood of foreigners, wars both serious and silly, environmental destruction, fortunes made and lost. This was a time of radical change but whatstayed the same during the Gold Rush?

• What kind of a change was the Gold Rush?

• What was the most important turning point in BC’shistory the 19th century?

• Did the Pacific Northwest change for the better as a result of the Gold Rush?

• When did British Columbia become British?

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What inquiry questions about continuity and change could we askabout thesephotographs?

Ladner Public School interior. -[ca. 1920] George Campbell Fonds

Delta Junior High School Class. -- [1977?]Beatrice and William Cain fonds

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Other Historical Thinking Concepts:

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Cause and Consequence

Few things can be more fascinating to students than unpeeling the oftendramatic complications of cause. And nothing is more poisonous to wholesocieties than a simple, monocausalexplanation of their past experiences and present problems.

(Lessons from History, The National

Center for History in the Schools.)

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John McMillan was a teacher at the Moodyvilleschool from 1900 to 1902. He woke up one morning to find the apple tree in front of his house covered in dead snakes.

What might explain this mystery? What hypotheses do you have?

Photo courtesy North Vancouver Museum and Archives

Snakes in the Tree

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• How did the Hudson’s Bay Company influence Canada?

• How did the Gold Rush shape British Columbia?

• Which Gold Rush had more significant impact on Canada’s history: the Fraser River Gold Rush or the Klondike Gold Rush?

• What were the underlying causes of Canada’s policy towards Jewish refugees?

• Why were the Japanese interned in WW II?

Cause and consequence questions from Heritage Fair projects

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Historical Perspective-Taking

asks us not to judge the past by today’s standards.

How can we better understand the foreignness of the past, and the different social, cultural, intellectual, and even emotional contexts that shaped people’s lives and actions in the past?

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Historical Perspective Taking

What ishappening in these photos? What is yourfeeling about this?

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• Why did so many people join the gold rush when they knew that the trip was hard and that conditions in the mining towns were bad?

• How did Europeans and Aboriginal peoples look upon the early exploration of Canada?

• Why did the government ban the potlatch and how did the First Nations react?

Historical perspective taking questions from Heritage Fair projects

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The Ethical Dimension

(T)he ethical dimension of historical thinking helps to imbue the study of history with meaning. Remembrance of heroes’ sacrifices, memorials to history’s victims, reparations for mass crimes, and restitution for stolen goods and ruined lives are all attempts to come to terms with the past in the present. (Seixas and Morton, The Big Six Historical Thinking Concepts)

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The Ethical Dimension

How can history help us to live in the present?

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• Was the Prime Minister’s apology for the abusive treatment of Aboriginal people in residential schools enough?

• Are there any possible lessons learned from the internment of Japanese-Canadians?

• Should Canada participate in wars or is peace-keeping the best solution?

• Was Farley Mowat justified in twisting the truth?

Ethical judgment questions from Heritage Fair projects

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Reflection (discuss in whatever order you wish):

• What questions do you have about what we have explored or what we have left out?

• What concept or approach do you want to put into practice?

• How will you introduce it?

• What pitfalls or barriers might you encounter and how could you work around them?

• What more might you do to build curiosity, connections, purpose, or engagement?

using big ideas to make history relevant delta 23 10-2015

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