Because It Does Matter

I just read this article on CNN.com entitled "If Students Fail History, Does It Matter." You can see from the title why I chose to read it.

 

http://www.cnn.com/2011/US/07/26/education.history.soboroff/index.html?hpt=hp_c2

 

The article points out that "Educators and reformers have several explanations for the low scores, including apathetic and disinterested students, poor teaching or problems with standardized testing. Some said that math, science and English get higher priority in schools because those subjects are tested under No Child Left Behind." It also states that "Some wonder whether schools should focus on history at all, when the ability to recall historic facts or themes might not help students land certain jobs later on."

Then there's the ray of hope. "But others say knowing how we came to our current way of life is always essential."

I'm with these folks.

History is NOT just a series of facts, dates, and themes. History is LIFE. Knowledge of our history informs everything that we do, every choice that we make, both as individuals and as a collective society. As the article continues, it discusses apathy in the political process as it relates to the disturbing lack of historical knowledge among students graduating from our schools. The connections are not surprising to me. While I'm not the most politically aware person, my rudimentary knowledge of political history does inform my choices when it comes election time. Historical knowledge and the teaching of history can increase analytical thought, which is essential to almost any job, whether it is one that is math and science related or one in the humanities. Or, even one that might not necessarily be deemed either.

History involves curiosity about how things happened. To narrow history to a series of dates and people to memories is to cheat students from a much more meaningful experience. Our society is soooo fascinated with celebrity and scandal, and history is full of that. Scandal has shaped our history (not exclusively, but there's much more out there that is salacious than people know!). But we reduce history to its most basic parts. That does everyone a disservice. Knowing a date and place doesn't help us know why an event occurred so that we can understand why we should or should not do something similarly today.

I don't know if that is a product of standardized testing, lack of funding, disinterested teachers, students, or parents. Maybe it's a combination of it all. In any case, it definitely matters if students fail history. They may not be doomed to repeat it, but they definitely will not understand their culture, or themselves, as fully, and will not contribute as completely to their community.