Why do we Need History in High Schools?

There have been several times over the past semester where something we have discussed in class has come up at my partner school (which I find very exciting!). In Monday's EDUC 311 class we discussed the importance (or lack of importance) of History as a topic in high school. In the History 30 class I attend at my partner school, the teacher has a weekly routine of covering current events on Thursdays. The students must find an article every week that pertains to either a local, provincial or national event or issue that has taken place or has been discussed over the last seven days, summarize the article and write a brief reflection. On Tuesday, one of the students asked why they have to look at current events when the course is supposed to be about History. Since we had been discussing the topic a day earlier, I decided to answer him. I used the example of the pope's resignation. The current event the students choose must have a Canadian connection, and a Canadian may be in the running to be the next pope. I explained that the event made history, even though it took place today. We may not recognize the significance of an event when it's happening, but in the future we will be able to understand why they are important.

In hindsight, I should have given some more examples of the significance of current events such as Idle No More, the induction of standardized testing in Saskatchewan, and the debate over the Keystone pipeline. Events and issues such as these will shift the way our country functions over time. When I come across that question again (and I'm sure I will) I will have a better answer prepared.

There are times I find the disconnect between university and my partner school experience disheartening. We are discouraged to use simple read and recall questions, but these activities are very common in high schools. I see the students become bored, and I feel as though routine activities are what makes students dislike the school experience. When I read Dummitt's "Finding a Place for the Father: Selling the Barbecue in Postwar Canada," I wondered why text such as this is rarely used in high schools. Sometimes I have a hard time discerning what level high school students are at, but I feel that this article, at least, would be feasible to create questions that would elicit thought and have students questioning concepts such as gender roles and how they have changed over time. This article includes what I consider the "fun" part of history. The topics in Dummitt's article pertain to everyone in some way - gender roles, cooking roles, family roles - there is endless opportunity for discussion.

Standardized testing will likely increase the amount of "recall" knowledge students are expected to learn, but there MUST be a place for critical thinking skills! At least history has taught me that, even if it takes an extremely long time, change will occur. I suspect school systems function in the same way.

Beginning to Think About Epistemology

The readings for this week's class had to do with feminist epistemology, a topic that took me a while to wrap my head around. What I understood from the readings is that knowledge is constructed by and subject to many different discourses, and it has been a trend over time that masculine discourse has been the dominant discourse. It didn't surprise me that this was the case because we have historically lived (and continue to live) in a patriarchal society. What I found interesting was that the first acknowledgement of feminist epistemology didn't come out until the early 1980s. It seems as though the world progresses quickly but, in hindsight, it has taken an extremely long time for women's voices to be heard in all realms of life.

In class we discussed the difference between knowledge that is socially constructed and knowledge that is individually constructed. While some people were confused at this concept, I feel as though I understood it quite well (perhaps because I have taken up the concept in past courses). All knowledge is socially constructed, but individual knowledge is subject to an individual's experience. To give an example, I think of differences in hair texture and color depending on race. For instance, I have no knowledge on how to style or manage a Black person's hair or an Asian person's hair because it is different than my own, whereas a Black or Asian person might have trouble styling and managing hair that is fine like mine. We gain knowledge from experience, and no person has the exact same experience as another. At this point in the College of Education and in my life in general I realize there are many forms of knowledge. Knowledge has no Truth but has several truths. (I almost want to put that on a poster for my future classroom.)

 I found that the video we watched at the beginning of class emphasized some important points when thinking about epistemology. I can't remember the speaker's name, but he mentioned diversity, creativity and imagination as being three essential components to teaching. His speech made me think of an article which I came across a few weeks ago:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/welcome-to-the-education-machine/article7580158/?utm_source=facebook.com&utm_medium=Referrer%3A+Social+Network+%2F+Media&utm_campaign=Shared+Web+Article+Links

The writer of the article likes schools to a machines that produce students who do the same things, think the same way, and follow the same rules when, in reality, individuals are not meant to be uniform. Individuals are meant to be unique, and too often teachers punish or discourage behaviour that falls outside of the expected norms. Schools should be innovative places where students with different talents and strengths are condoned rather than condemned. Teachers, above all other people, should understand that knowledge is not right or wrong and that a universal truth for one person may not be a universal truth for another.