In this essay, the author discusses an analytical model for describing interactions and analyzing connections in history. The first objective of this model is a procedure to "describe interactions" in the past. This first step is entirely descriptive and focuses on identifying complexity. The second objective in this study is a procedure to…

Every day everyone drives by local burying grounds and cemeteries, glancing at history while everyone passes. All over America valuable information is being washed away by acid rain, destroyed by vandalism, or simply forgotten and neglected. Students can help stop this destruction and loss of data with a cemetery project-based experience. For many…

To think like a historian, students must select and assess evidence that supports interpretations of the meaning of the past. Three historians focus on aspects of this task and pursue different approaches to teach their students to use evidence. (Contains 2 figures.)

When teachers ask upper middle school and high school students what they know about the Westward movement, the students usually draw on their experiences with simulation games. Rather than rely on simulation games or texts to help students understand that era, these authors advocate moving middle or high school students from a simplistic to a…

The first part of this article describes how, as an independent educator, Eve Nussbaum Soumerai developed numerous theatrical tributes to inspirational historical figures (Anne Frank, Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Dalai Lama, for example). By participating in these productions, young people learned about the lives of these figures and shared…

If teachers want to get their undergraduate students engaged in the study of history, there is no substitute for getting them to do their own research using original sources. In practical terms, this involves posing a good question, framing that question in a critical framework for analysis, searching for relevant documents, writing an interesting…

Social studies instruction in the elementary school is sometimes far removed from the students' daily lives, and teachers continually search for ideas to create more meaningful learning experiences. That is especially true when students study history, which can often be distant, abstract, and impersonal. As many classroom teachers realize,…

Most people believe that by learning about the past, students can better prepare for the future. As a teacher of U.S. history, the author believes that people learn much about the present from their study of the past. She also believes that juxtaposing past and present can help students understand that dissent can be patriotic and that the…

Although primary source work is a major component of undergraduate history degrees in many countries, the topic of how best to support this work has been relatively unexplored. This article addresses the pedagogical support of primary source work by reviewing relevant literature to identify the challenges undergraduates face in interpreting…

In this article, the authors build upon the use of GIS (Geographic Information Systems) in U.S. history and in current demographic studies, using examples from co-author Herschel Sarnoff's classroom in the Watts section of Los Angeles. They discuss theoretical and conceptual approaches that support student learning with GIS and provide resources…

The ancient Silk Routes connecting China to Europe across the rugged mountains and deserts of central Asia are one of the primary examples of transculturation in world history. Traders on these routes dealt not only in goods such as silk and horses but also made possible the spread of art forms as well as two major religions, Buddhism and Islam. …

One of the great challenges for the Teaching American History (TAH) grant program is changing conventional K-12 history pedagogy. The literature is full of a myriad of complaints about the traditionally poor pedagogy of secondary school history teachers. History faculty are among the most severe critics. Yet their complaints are often fuzzy and…

The aim of the Central Michigan University Alpena-Montmorency-Alcona Teaching American History (TAH) Project has been to forge a model of professional development that would not merely improve teachers' knowledge of events, people, and dates, but to go beyond this to strengthen the understanding of the nature and practice of historical thinking,…

Historical stories of scientists provide an excellent opportunity to help students see that science is indeed a human endeavor and demonstrate the interrelationships among science, technology, and society. A number of engaging historical accounts illustrate characteristics of the nature of science. The story of Lise Meitner leads students through…

In this article, the authors explore the effects of Virginia's high stakes history tests on beginning teachers' "notions of historical thinking," and briefly consider the literature on historical thinking, high-stakes testing, and beginning teachers. Data sources for this study included interviews, observations, and classroom documents…