History encompasses more than just a chronology of past events. It’s the study of those past events and their influence on current and future events. Historians use many different sources to learn about the past, including written documents, oral histories, physical artifacts and ecological markers. Students of history often learn how to access, gather, organize, present and interpret these historical data. They also develop the ability to consider and assess conflicting theories on the past.
Historians often disagree about the precise causes and effects of specific events in history. In addition, they may disagree about how much emphasis should be placed on the role of chance in the course of human events or on whether or not humans can be considered to have free will.
For this reason, it’s important for students of history to understand that the discipline is not just about memorizing names and dates. It’s about understanding why those names and dates matter, how they fit into a bigger picture and how that picture will affect the future.
Learning to process information like this helps students understand how different choices in the past could have dramatically altered the outcome of a situation. For example, a decision to expand an empire might lead to increased instability and tax resources that could be better spent on fighting wars or addressing other needs of the time.
A student of history must be able to identify the differences between “truths” and “biases” in the writings of historians and other sources, such as archaeologists. This skill carries over into the rest of life and helps a student to think critically about the world around him.
Memorizing names and dates can be a difficult aspect of studying history, but there are ways to make it more interesting and memorable. For example, students can use rhythmic patterns to help remember certain pieces of information. For example, students might repeat a rhyme to help them remember that it was on November 5th, 1605 that Guy Fawkes was hanged for trying to blow up the British Parliament.
Developing an interest in the past makes it easier to recall important information for homework, tests and conversations. It also creates a thirst for knowledge that can be fulfilled by studying additional topics related to that period in history. This can help students become better prepared for future exams, and can keep them interested in the subject long after they’ve left school.
Using the discipline of history to serve an ideological agenda can damage its usefulness as an educational tool. Using history as the weapon of choice in culture wars is a sure way to distort and misrepresent the facts. Tolstoy once complained that the study of history had become nothing more than “a collection of fables and useless trifles.” It’s no wonder people are skeptical of a discipline whose main goal seems to be to teach us to be politically correct or “not to get too emotional about things.” Thankfully, this is not the case for all history teachers, but it does exist in some.